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Class. 
Book. 



Copyright N" 

CfiPWIGHT DEPOSm 



a 



By the same author, 

COTTON MANUFACTURING, 

6th Thousand. 

WEAVING CALCULATIONS, 
4th Thousand. 

See j)age 36/,. 






COTTON. 



COTTON 

ITS 

Uses, Varieties, Fibre Structure, Cultivation, 

AMI 

Preparation for the Market and as an Article of Commerce, 

ALSO THE 

Manufacture of Cotton Seed Oil, 

Cotton Seed Meal and Fertilizers, 

WITH 

Especial Reference to Cotton Growing, Ginning, and Oil 
Pressing in the United States. 

c' "P.< "B ROOKS , 



AuTiioK OF "CoTTox Maxufacturen'g " AXD " Weavixg Cai.culatxoxs " ; 
Former Examixer to the City axd Guilds of Loxdox Institute 

FOR THE AdVAXCEMEXT OF TeCHXICAL EDUCATION; Ux'ITED 

States Membfzr of the Bureau of the Inter- 

XATioxAL Congress ox Techxical 

Educatiox. 



NEW YORK: 
SPOX c^' CHAMBERLAIN, 12 CORTLANDT STREET, 

LONDON : 
E. ct F. N. SPON, Limited, 125 STRAND. 

LOWELL, MASS.: 
CHRLSTOPHER P. BROOKS. 

]8!t8. 

All rights reserved. 



\K 



Entered according to Act of Congress, in the year IS'.'S, 

By CHRISTOPHER P. BROOKS, 

in the ottice of the Librarian of Congress, at Washington, D.C. 



Entered at Stationers' Hall, London, in the year 1898. 



'3)^^Vr, ^ 



All rights, including republication, reproduction and translation 
are reserved. The preparation of lantern slides of the illustrations is 
prohibited without permission and acknowledgment. 



LOWELL, MASS. : 

BUTTERFIELD PRINTING AND BINDING CO. 

1898. 



ny^ 






CONTKNTS. 



CHAPTER I. 

THE BOTANY OF COTTON.— LIFE HISTORY OF THE PLANT.— STRTTTURE 
AND COMPOSITION OF THE FIBRE.— THE COTTON AND COTTON FIHLDS 
OF THE WORLD 17 



CHAPTER n. 

THE AMERICAN COTTON BELT.— PEOPLE OF THE COTTON BELT.— LAND 
TENURE IN THE. COTTON BELT.— AREA OF AVAILABLE COTTON LAND 
IN THE UNITED STATES 106 



chaptp:r hi. 

COTTON CULTURE.— FERTILIZERS.— SELECTION OF SEED.- FOREIGN COTTON 
SEED.— COTTON PLANTING.— CHOPPING OUT. — CULTIVATING THE 
PLANT. — COTTON PICKING. — OPERATIONS OF COTTON CULTURE.— 
DAMAGE TO CROPS.— CULTIVATION OF SEA ISLAND COTTON. . 129 



CHAPTER IV. 

PREPARATION OF COTTON FOR T-HE MARKES.- GINNING AND BALING.— 
INVENTION OF THE SAW GIN.— OLD-TIME GINNING.- OLD-TIME BAL- 
ING.— MODERN GINNING. — THE SAW GIN. — COTTON GINNERIES. —THE 
MODERN GINNERY.— THE ROLLER GIN. — PERCENTAGE OF LINT.— 
BALING 202 



O CONTENTS. 

CHAPTEP. V. 

TUE PWRMER TO THE COTTON MERCHANT. - LOCAL SALE OF COTTON.— 
SAMPLING AND GRADING. - COMPRESSING. -OCEAN SHIPMENT. -METH- 
ODS OF BALING COTTON 240 



CHAPTEP \\. 

COTTON AS AN ARTICLE OF COMMERCE. — COTTON MARKETS OF THE 
UNITED STATES.— THE NEW YORK AND NEW ORLEANS CONTRACTS.- 
MILL PURCHASES. — LAND FREIGHT ON COTTON. — THE EUROPEAN 
COTTON MARKETS. - LIVERPOOL. — CONTINENTAL MARKETS. — OCEAN 
FREIGHT.- IMPORTS OF EGYPTIAN AND PERUVIAN COTTON INTO THE 
UNITED STATES.- COST OF RAISING COTTON 274 



CHAPTER Vn. 

BYE PRODUCTS OF COTTON SEED.- COTTON SEED OIL MILLS.— THE MANU- 
FACTURE OF COTTON SEED OIL.- COTTON SEED MEAL. -OIL REFIN- 
ERIES. -USES OF COTTON SEED OIL. - COTTON SEED AND MEAL AS 
FERTILIZERS.- AN ENGLISH COTTON SEED OIL MILL. - DELINTING 
COTTON SEED.- PRICES OF COTTON SEED PRODUCTS. - . . 309 

Detailed index to reading matter on pages 3.33 to 302. 



P R E F A C E. 

( 'onsidcring that cotton is the greatest of all tll)re crops 
and the most widely manufactured of all textiles, the attention 
which has been given in textile literature to the botany of the 
plant, to the structure of the fibre, and to the numerous processes 
through which it passes before its arrival at the mill, has been 
meagre in the extreme and especially small in proportion to 
the attention that has. been given to descriptions of the after 
processes of manufacture. Among the many subjects of great 
importance to all engaged in, or associated with, cotton manu- 
facture, which have hitherto not been made the subject of 
special study from a manufacturer's point of view, except in 
verv few instances, are the growth and cultivation of the cot- 
ton plant, plowing, sowing, cultivating, and harvesting of the 
crop, the ginning, baling, and compressing of the fibre, and the 
shipping and handling of the bales in the markets of the 
the world ; also the manufacture of the many bye products 
of the cotton seed, such as cotton seed oil, meal, linters, etc., 
and perhaps the most important of all, a description of the 
varieties of cotton from all parts of the world, and the char- 
acteristics of each cotton, its suitability for various purposes, 
the yarns and cloths that can be made from it, and the econ- 
omy that can be attained by an accurate and skilled selectioii 
of cotton for each kind of yarn or goods. 

Usually these have been passed over by a few sentences 
in textile text books, or altogether ignored, but in this volume 
they are now dealt with very fully. 

Taking advantage of a residence in the United States 
cotton belt during the years 1895 and 1896, I made the inves- 
tigation of some of the less known subjects connected with the 



10 PREFACK. 

production of the great fibre crop a s})ecial study. The infor- 
mation that I then obtained, added to theresuUs of fifteen years' 
experience in manufacturing the filjre, seemed to me wortliy the 
attention of spinners and manufacturers of yarns and of cloth, 
of builders of textile machinery and students in textile 
schools, and I have added this book to those that I have i)re- 
viously written, hoping to give new facts of importance to 
those who would increase their knowledge of the fibre, and 
their skill in manipulating it in its manufacture into the 
thread or the fabric. ]My intention has been to produce at the 
same time a volume that would be of interest to the cotton 
factor, to the merchant, the broker, and all whose business it 
is to buy or sell the fibre in its raw or manufactured condition, 
and last, but not least, to produce a summary of the experi- 
ence of many men and many minds as to the most satisfactorv 
method of cotton culture that would be useful to the planter. 
To do this satisfactorily, it has been necessary to illustrate the 
book copiously ; this has been done at considerable expense, 
but there is some compensation in knowing that it is one of 
the best illustrated textile books of recent years. 

While the book is sufficiently technical to be of valualjle 
assistance to the planter, the merchant and the manufacturer, 
and especially so to the students in the cotton departments in 
textile schools, yet I have attempted to make it sufficiently 
popular as to be of interest to the general reader. 

I do not claim, in fact, it would be ])resumption on my 
part to do so, that my own experience and observations are to 
have exclusive credit for the information in this volume ; on 
the contrary, I wish to take this opportunity of expressing my 
greatest aj)preciation of the assistance rendered by many 
friends on both sides of the Atlantic, and more especially in 
the southern states of the Union, for the interest the}'' have 
taken, and assistance they have rendered, in the production of 
this volume, and also to the United States Department of 
Agriculture, and the Agricultural Departments and Experiment 



PREFACE. 11 

Stations of several ^states, including South Carolina, C4eorgia, 
Mississippi, Alabama, Louisiana and Tennessee, and their 
courteous officials for the valuable information that they have 
from time to time provided me with, and for permission to 
make extracts from their bulletins. 

I especially refer to the following : Hy. Hammond, Esq., 
of Augu.sta, Ga. ; Hy. G. Kittredge, Esq., of Boston, Mass. ; 
Fred Oliver, Esq., of Charlotte, N.C. ; Col. A. B. Shepperson, of 
New York City ; Signor Crespi, of Milan, Italy ; Dr. AV. H. 
Evans ; D. A. Tompkins, Esq., of Charlotte, X. C. ; Peter 
Brown, Esq., Secy. Liverpool Cotton As.sociation, of Liverpool, 
P^ngland ; C. J. H. Woodbury, Esq., of Boston, Mass. ; Dr. 
Payne, Atlanta, Ga., and to numerous farmers, i)lanters, 
merchants and others in all parts of the Cotton Belt. 

To the many private firms and individuals, officials of 
railway companies, amateur and professional photographers, 
and others who have helped me in the provision of illustrations 
for this volume, I would also express my thanks. In many 
cases, these are acknowledged in the references in the text, but 
in case there have been any unintentional omissions, I wish now 
to thank those to whom I refer. In this connection I would 
name the New England Cotton Manufacturers' Association, 
and its secretary and treasurer, C. J. H. Woodbury, Esq. ; Hon. 
Fred. G. Pettigrove, of Boston, Ma.ss. ; J. C. Hale, of the Cen- 
tral of Georgia Railway Co. ; B. ife F. Avery, of Louisville, 
K}'. ; Eagle Gin Co., of Bridgewater, Mass. ; Hy. G. Kittredge, 
Esq., of Boston, JNIass. ; D. A. Tompkins, Esq., of Charlotte, N. 
C. ; the St. Louis Southwestern Railway Co. ; Dr. Bowman, of 
Northwich, Cheshire, Eng. ; Latham, Alexander it Co., of New 
York City ; Henry Lee, Escp, London, Eng. ; Jos. M. Wade, 
Esq., Boston, Mass. ; Hon. G. W. Hill, Washington, D. C. ; 
Mr. Coovert, Greenville, Miss. : Stillwell-Bierce and Smith-A'aile 
Co., DaA'ton, 0. ; Abraham Flatters, Esq., Manchester, Eng. ; 
The Cardwell Machine Company, Richmond, Va. ; The Carver 
Cotton Gin Company, East Bridgewater, Mass. ; The Draper 



12 PREFACE. 

Company, Hopedale, Mass. ; Paul Bigelow, Esq., MorristowD, 
N. J. ; L. ^>)Ol■llies, Esq., New Orleans ; Carver Cotton Gin 
Company, liridge water, INIass., and others. 

The writer wishes to state that tlie information in this 
volume has special reference to United States methods and to 
American cotton. While comparisons have been given with 
the conditions obtaining in other countries, yet where it is not 
especially specified, the writer refers to the United States sys- 
tems and practices. Even in this, it has not been possible to 
give one standard system of cultivating, ginning, and baling, 
ecjually applicable to all the States, but an attempt has been 
made to render the information sufficiently comprehensive. 
The author would ask the reader to remember that systems 
and practices differ, not only in the different states, but in the 
different counties of each state, if not on the different ftirms in 
each county. 

As has before been stated the l)ulk of the matter in 
the volume was written prior to 1S97 ; it has since formed 
the subject matter of many lectures to the students in the 
Lowell Textile School. 

The author invites correspondence with reference to any 
portion of the book and any suggestion or additional informa- 
tion that might be embodied in future editions. 

Christopher P. Brooks. 

LowKLL, Mass., Mai/, 1898. 



LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS. 



Fig. 

Frontispiece; The End of the Day .... to face title 

1. Young Cotton Plant 

2, 3, 4. Branches from Cotton Plant . .... 
• 5. Cotton Plant showing leaves, flowers, closed and open bolls 

6. Longitudinal and Transverse Section of Egyptian Cotton Pod 

7. Cotton on the Seed 

8. Microscopic View of Cotton Fibres .... 

9. Ripe aaid Unripe Cotton Fibres 

10. Flax and Ramie Fibres 

11. Wool and Cotton Fibres 

12. Wool and Hair 

13. Cotton Fibres Under Chemical Action 

14. Diagram to Scale — Cotton Crops of 1895-96 

15. American Cotton Fibres 

16. 17. Comparative Lengths of Cotton Fibres to Scale. . 
18, 19. Sea Island Cotton, longitudinal views and sections 

20. Orleans or Gulf Cotton, American, longitudinal views 

21. Benders Cotton, American, longitudinal views . 

22. Uplands Cotton, American, longitudinal views . 

23. Texas Cotton, American, longitudinal views 

24. Brazilian Cotton, sections 

25. Pernambuco Cotton, Brazilian, longitudinal views 

26. Maranham Cotton, Brazilian, longitudinal views 

27. Rough Peruvian Cotton, longitudinal views 

28. Egyptian Cotton, sections 

29. Brown Egyptian Cotton, longitudinal views 

30. Brown Egyptian Cotton, sections 

31. Broach Cotton, Indian, longitudinal views . 

32. Oomrawattee Cotton, Indian, longitudinal views 

33. Dhollerah Cotton, Indian, longitudinal views . 

34. Scinde Cotton, Indian, longitudinal views . 



Page. 

page. 
25 

27,29 
31 
33 
34 
35 
43 
44 
45 
46 
47 
50 
55 

51,52 
56 
57 
58 
59 
60 
60 
61 
62 
63 
65 
65 
67 
67 
69 



14 



LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS. 



Fig. 

.35, 36. Indian and Other Asian Cottons, sections 

37. Tinnivelly Cotton, longitudinal views 

38. Comparative Sectional Views of Different Cottons 

39. China Cotton, longitudinal views 

40. China Cotton, sections 

41. The Vegetable Lamb ..... 

42. Portrait of the " Barometz," or " ycythian Lamb" 

43. Picking Cotton 

44. A View on the Chattahoochee River at Columbus, Ca. 

45. Convicts "Working on County Road, near Atlanta, Ga. 

46. Map of the United States 

47. North Carolina Cotton Mill Help .... 

48. Georgia Convicts . . 

49. New and Old. A Nortlirop Loom in South Carolina 

50. Cotton Mills to the Cotton 

51. Why Some People Cannot Make a Living in Arkansas 

52. Hand Spinning and Weaving in the South 

53. New Cotton Field 

54. Old Cotton Field 

55. A North Carolina Chain Gang 

56. Cultivator with Stalk Cutting Attachmeni 

57. 58. Wooden Plow Stocks 

59. Steel Beam Plow 

60. Plow Blades or Plow Shares 

61. Steel Beam Plow with Middle Burster 

62. A Cotton Field 

63. Disc Cultivator .... 

64. Cotton Field and Peach Orchard Together 

65. Cultivator with INIiddle Burster . 

66. Dowlaw Cotton Planter ... 

67. Cotton Planter and Fertilizer 

68. Riding Cultivator ..... 

69. A, An LTnpicked Cotton Field — Morning 
B, The Same Field Picked — Evening 

70. Cotton Field in Flower 

7L Cotton Picking 

72. Cotton Picking in the Late Fall 

78. Cotton Picking 

74. Pickers Waiting for Cotton to be Weighei 

75. Weighing Cotton from the Pickers 

76. Mosaic Disease, or Yellow Leaf Blight 

77. Anthracnose 

78. 79. Root Rot and Arceolate Mildew 

80. Root Galls 

81. Transformations of Cotton Bull Worm 



PauE. 
74 
75 
76 
77 
77 
96 
97 
99 
101 
103 
112 
111 
113 
115 
117 
119 
121 
123 
125 
127 
131 
133 
133 
135 
137 
139 
141 
143 
145 
147 
149 
151 
153 
153 
155 
157 
159 
161 
163 
165 
169 
169 
171 
173 
175 



COTTON. 



CHAPTER I. 

THE BOTANY OF COTTON. — LIFE HISTORY OF THE PLANT. — STRUC- 
TURE AND COMPOSITION OF THE FIBRE. THE COTTON AND 

COTTON FIELDS OF THE WORLD. 

Cotton is the most wideh' manufactured of all fibres, and 
the cotton plant has been cultivated for countless ages.. The 
vegetable fibre, known to commerce as cotton, sometimes called 
cotton wool, is the fruit of a plant belonging to the order of the 
Malvacaa% to which belong the mallow, the hollyhock and 
the okra. The cotton plant belongs to the genus Gossypium, 
and the number of species from a botanical })oint of view is 
variously stated as from four to eighty-eight. 

Species of Cotton, Prof. Parlatore, an Italian botanist of 
high authority, names seven varieties, as under : — 

1. Gossypium Barhadense, embracing the long-staj)led 
Barbadoes, Sea Island, Egyptian and Peruvian cottons. 

2. Gossi/pium lierbaccmn, embracing the cottons of India, 
Siam, China, Italy, etc. 

3. Gossijpiuvi hirsutum, the original cotton of Louisiana, 
and also of the variety known in commerce as uplands. 

4. Gossypium arboreum, found in Ceylon, Arabia, South 
America, etc. 

5. Gossypium Peruvinnum, embracing the native varieties 
ot Peruvian and Brazilian cottons. 

6. Gossypium Tahitense, found in Tahiti, the Society 
Islands, etc., and, 

7. Gossypium Sandwichensc, including the cottons found 
in the Sandwich and adjacent islands. 



18 COTTOX. [chap. I. 

LiiiiiL'Us ()rii;iii;illy ^;i\c' only live species of the cotton 
plant, ])r. Bowman, the leading- English authority on the 
cotton filjre, gives three, vvliile Dr. Forbes Koyle gives four. 
Dr. Koyle's classitication includes; — 

Gossj/pluiii lirrhdccuiii. 

Gossypiii III iir/iorrii III . 

GosSj/j)in III J)iirh(i(IriiNc. 

(to-^sI/jiIii III Jii rsnfii III. 

These are the inur varieties principally known to 
commerce, and although there are possibly additional species 
they are not of very much importance. 

Dr. Koyle says : — 

"The first mentioned of these species, gos^ypinm her- 
hacevrii grows from four to six feet high, bearing a yellow 
flower. The seeds are covered with a short grey down, whilst 
the fibre it bears is classed short. It is found native or exotic 
in Egypt, Asia Minor, Arabia, India and China. The short 
stapled variety of Egyptian cotton is of this s})ecies. The Indian 
cottons are the product of a variety named by Lamarck the G. 
Indicuiii. This grows from eight to ten feet high, and, like 
the allied species generally, bears a yellow flower, the seeds 
being downy, and the fibre short-stapled and very white. 

The gossypiuni arboreuni when full grown attains a height 
of from fifteen to twenty feet, from which fact it derives its 
name. The flowers are red, the seeds covered with a 
greenish-colored fur, and enveloped in yellowish-white fibre. 
It is found in Egypt, Arabia, India and China. 

The gossypiiuii hirsufum is a shrubby plant, its max- 
imum height being about six feet. The young pods are hairy, 
the seeds numerous, free, and covered with firmly adhering 
green down under the long white wool. 

The gossypiiiiii Barhadense grows to the height of from 
six to fifteen feet. Its flowers are yellow, and its seeds black 
and smooth, being quite destitute of the hair that distinguishes 
several members of the species. As implied by its name, it is- 



CHAi'. I.] SI'KCIKS OF COTTON. 19 

a native of Barl)atloc'S, or has been cnltivated there lor a long- 
time. The cottons most highly esteemed in commerce belong- 
to this species, having probably undergone only slight modifi- 
cations as the result of climatic influences and variations in 
the method of cultivation. The Sea Island and Bourbon 
cottons, from which the fine yarns used in the manufticture of 
lace are made, the long-stapled Egyptian, and several other 
good varieties, are said to be from this stock, as they possess 
many points of identity or resemblance. If this is so, it has, 
however, undergone considerable alteration by its transfer to 
new localities and changes in the method of cultivation." 

The above is, as before stated, the description of Dr. 
Forbes Royle, but the writer does not consider it reliable in all 
cases. For example, it is very clear that the gossypium 
herbacciini is largely cultivated in the United States although 
Dr. Royle does not mention the fact, while the gossyjiium 
arboremn so widely cultivated in Central and South America, 
is credited to the Orient. 

Doctor Walter H. Evans sa\-s in Bulletin 33 of the United 
States Department of Agriculture : — 

"Among the species recognized to be of more or less 
economic importance are G. arboreum, G. neglectum, G. 
Brasiliense, G. hcrbaceum, G. Barbadense, and perhaps a few 
others. In North America only the herbaceous cottons are 
cultivated to any extent. The shrubby and arboreous are 
grown occasionally as curiosities, but they seldom or never 
produce any lint in regions having as low a mean temi^erature 
as the cotton belt of the United States. 

The determination of the species of cotton grown in the 
United States presents some peculiar difficulties. The authori- 
ties differ widely regarding the specific origin of the short- 
staple or upland cotton, while more nearly agreeing on that 
of the Sea Island cotton. The latter is generalh' considered 
as having originated from G. Barbadense, a technical descrip- 
tion of which is given. 



20 COTTON. [chap. I. 

(r. B(ifJ)(iden^e Linn, was originally described as having 
leaves, three-lobed, entire. A more amplified compiled de- 
scription is as follows : Shrubby, perennial, six to eight feet 
high, but in cultivation herbaceous and annual or biennial, 
three to four feet high, glabrous, dotted with more or less 
prominent black glands. Stem erect, terete, branching. 
Branches graceful, spreading, subpyramidal, somewhat an- 
gular, ascending, at length recurving. Leaves alternate, petio- 
late, as long as the petioles, rotund ovate, subcordate, three 
to five lobed, sometimes with some of the lower and u})per 
leaves entire, cordate, ovate, acuminate ; lobes ovate, ovate- 
lanceolate, acute or acuminate, channeled above, sinus subro- 
tund, above green, lighter on veins, glabrous, beneath pale 
green and glabrous, three to five veined, the midvein and 
sometimes one or both pairs of lateral veins bearing a dark 
green gland near their bases. Stipules erect or spreading, 
curved, lanceolate-acuminate, entire, or somewhat laciniate. 
Peduncles equal to or shorter than the petiole, erect, elongating 
after flowering, rather thick, angled, sometimes bearing a 
large oval gland below the involucre. Involucre three-parted, 
erect, segments spreading at top, man3^-veined, l>roadly 
cordate-ovate, exceeding half the length of the corolla, nine to 
eleven divided at top, divisions lanceolate, acuminate. Calyx 
much shorter than the involucre, bracts cup shaped, slightl}' 
five-toothed or entire. Corolla longer than the bracts. Petals 
open, but not widely expanding after flowering, broadly obo- 
vate, obtuse, crenate or undulate margined, yellow or sulphur 
colored, with a pur[)le spot on the claw, all becoming purplish in 
age. Stemens about half the length of the corolla, the tube 
naked below, anther bearing above. Style equaling or exceed- 
ing the stamens, three to five parted. Ovary ovate, acute, 
glandular, three, rarely four to five celled. Capsule a little 
longer than the persistent involucre, oval, acuminate, green, 
shining, three, rarely four to five valved. A^alves oblong or 
ovate-oblong, acuminate, the points widel}^ spreading. Seed 



CHAP, i] SPECIES OF COTTON. 21 

six to nine in each cell, obovate, narrowed at base, black. 
Fiber white, three to four or more times the length of the 
seeds, silky, easily separable from the seed. Cotyledons 3'ellow- 
ish, grandular ])unctate. 

Species which have been considered synonyms of G. Barh- 
ade)ise and to which the above description will apply are G. 
frutescens Lasteyr., G. fuscum Roxb., G. r/Iabrum Lam., G. Jam- 
aicensc Macfad., G. JavcDiicum Blume, G. mariihnum Todaro, 
G. uif/nim Hamilton, G. oligosperiiium INIacfad., G. percnne 
Blanco, G. Peruvianum Cav., G. punctatum '^chnm. and Thonn., 
G. racemosum Poir., G. religiosum Parlatore, G. viflfoliam Roxb., 
and perhaps others. 

This species is indigenous to the Lesser Antilles and 
probably to Ban Salvador, the Bahamas, Barbados, Guada- 
loupe, and other islands between 12° and 2()° north latitude. 
By cultivation it has been extended throughout the West 
Indies, the maritime coast of the Southern States, Central 
America, Porto Rico, Jamaica, etc., southern Spain, Algeria, 
the islands and coast of western tropical Africa, Egypt, Island 
of Bourbon, East Indies, Queensland, New South Wales, etc. 
It ma}' be cultivated in any region adapted to the olive and 
near the sea, the principal requisite being a hot and humid 
atmosphere, but the results of acclimatization indicate that the 
humid atmosphere is not entirely necessary if irrigation be 
employed." 

It will have l)eeii noted that two species, viz. ; the //".s.s-//- 
jnuin arhorciiiii and Penirlcniuni really belong to the class of 
trees as distinguished from the remainder of the species which 
are merely shrubs. The tree cottons are cultivated as peren- 
nials as distinguished from the gossjjpii(m liirsufnm, r/ossi/piHni 
lierbaceum and other species, which are cultivated as annuals. 
Some measurements of the trunks of the tree cottons taken in 
Porto Rico, West Indies have been supplied to the writer by 
Mr. H. G. Kittredge and are : — Diameter of the stem at the 
ground, after one and one-fourth year's growth, one and one- 



22 COTTON. [cii.M'. I. 

fourth inches ; after two and one-half year's growth, two inches ; 
after five year's growth, five inches. 

The seeds of the tree cotton are in ki(lney-sha})ed cki.sters 
and thus tlie cotton is often called '■ kidney cotton." 

United States Species. It is usually considered in the 
United ^States that the cotton j)lant which is chiefl}^ cultivated 
belongs to the species herhaceum, and it is so believed by most 
of the leading agriculturists. 

Some botanists consider that the gossypium Jiirsutum 
variety is the u})land cotton of the United States and distin- 
guish it from Inrhiiceiiin by the green tinted down covering 
the seeds, but it is not by any means true that the whole 
of the mainland cotton of the United States is raised from 
the green seeded variety. It fact quite a large quantity of 
the seeds carry the grey down, which is supposed to denote 
the f/ossi/piuni JicrhdcoDit. It is the experience of many 
farmers that if they plant green seeded cotton and use the 
seeds from the same })lant year after year, that there is a 
gradual change from green seeded to grey seeded cotton, the 
conclusion being that the gossypbim Inrsiitin)! was originally 
a sport from the gos-si/pium herhaccinn. It is probable, there- 
fore, tliat ilie gosxi/jtinin licrhacrK in and i\ic gossi/pin in Jiirsntiini 
are not distinct varieties, but that the supposed distinctive fea- 
tures of the two varieties are more attributable to soil and 
cultivation than to being separate varieties. To this vari- 
ety, liri'haccinih or hlrxnfiim. wliichever may be the correct 
name for it, the l)ulk of the cotton plants as cultivated in the 
United States belong. It has been noticed by the seed crushers 
that the green seed comes more from the northern than from 
the southern cotton growing states. 'J'here is, however, a strip 
of land along the coast of South Carolina and Florida, with 
adjacent islands, where gos.^gphiin B<irh<i<hn^e is almost exclu- 
sively cultivated, and it is distinguishable by the long staple of 
the cotton and by the smooth black seeds to which the cotton 
is attached. 



CHAP. I.] Sl'ECIES OF COTTON. 23 

Assuming tliat tlie (1. Iiirsiifiini and (j. Itrrhdvcum varieties, 
as cultivated in the United States, are so similar that it is 
almost impossi])le to distinguish any difference, we will accept 
Dr. W. IT. Evans' description of the r/ossj/pliim licrhaceum as 
being undoul)tedly reliable. 

"Cf. livrbaccum Linn. — Shrubby, perennial, but in cultiva- 
tion herbaceous, annual or biennial. Pubescence variable, part 
being long, simple or stellate, horizontal or spreading, some- 
times short, stellate, abundant, or the plants may be hir.sute, 
silky, or all pubescence may be more or less wanting, the 
plants being glabrous or nearly so. Glands more or less 
prominent. Stem terete, or somewhat angled above, branch- 
ing. Branches spreading or erect. Leaves alternate, petioled, 
the petioles about equaling the blades, cordate or subcordate, 
three to five, rarely seven-lobed. Lobes from oval to ovate, 
acuminate, pale green above, lighter beneath, more or less 
hairy on the veins, three to five or seven-veined, the midvein 
and sometimes the nearest lateral veins glandular toward the 
base or glands wanting. Sinus obtuse. Lower leaves some- 
times cordate, acuminate, entire, or slightly lobed. Stipules 
erect or spreading, ovate-lanceolate to linear lanceolate, acumi- 
nate, entire or occasionally somewhat dentate. Peduncles 
erect in flower, becoming pendulous in fruit. Livolucre 
three, rarely four parted, sliorter tlian the corolla, appressed 
spreading in fruit, broadly cordate, incisely serrate, the 
divisions lanceolate, acuminate, entire or sometimes sparingly 
dentate. Calyx less than half the length of the involucre, 
cup-shaped, dentate, with short teeth. Petals erect, spreading, 
obovate or cuncate, obtuse or cnuirginate, curled or crenulate, 
white or pale yellow, usually with a purple spot near the base, 
in age becoming reddish. Stamens half the length of the 
corolla. Pistil equal or longer than the stamens. Ovary 
rounded, obtuse or acute, grandular, three to five celled. 
St3de about twice the length of the ovary, three to five parted 
above, the glandular })ortion often marked with two rows of 



24 COTTON. [chap. I. 

glands. Capsule erect, globose or ovate, obtuse or acuminate, 
mucronate, pale green, three to five celled. Valves ovate to 
oblong, with spreading tips. Seed five to eleven in each cell, 
free, obovate to subgalbrous, narrowed at base, clothed with 
two forms of fiber, one short and dense, closely enveloping 
the seed, the other two to three times the length of the seed, 
white, silky, and separating with some difficulty. Cotyledons 
somewhat glandular punctate. 

This species includes in its synonyms the following : G. 
alhiun Hamilton, (i. Vliinem^c Fisch. and Otto, (1. croceum 
Hamilton, G. ccihindnloxnni Cav., G. chitiun Salisb., (j. (/landn- 
lomm Steud, G. JiirsufiDn Linn., (r. ixdiciiin Lam., (r. lutifolium 
Murr., G. leoninum Medic, (r. Mdcedon'icinn. j\Iurr., G. micran- 
tlium Cav., G. niolle ^lauri, (/. ndiikin Meyen, G. ohtiislfoliiini. 
Ivoxb., G. panieuIatwniBlixnco, G. punctatum Guil. and Perr., G. 
7'eligiosum Linn., G. Siamense Tenore, G. sincnse Fisch., G. f<frir- 
timi Medic, G. tricuspidatum. Lam., and G. rififolhiin Koxb., 
together with numerous others the descriptions of which are 
too indefinite or the specimens too meager to determine tliem 
positively. 

The origin of this series is much more confused than that 
of the Sea Island cotton. If we separated the upland cotton 
into two species, viz., G. Jierbaceum and G. hirsdtam, probably 
the question would no doubt be simplified, as the former is 
generally considered of Asiatic origin, while the other is attri- 
buted to America. Todaro claims that the form called by 
him G. Jursufuni originated in Mexico, from whence it has 
been spread by cultivators throughout the warmer portions of 
the world. To this form he ascribes the Georgia upland 
cotton. Parlatore considers it indigenous to some of the 
islands of the Gulf of Mexico as well as the mainland, and 
all green-seeded cotton, which is cultivated so widely, as 
originating from this form. On the other hand, he claims 
India, especially the shores of Coromandel, as the primitive 
home of G. herbaceum, from which place it has spread as 



CHAP. I.] LIFE HISTORY OF THE COTTON PLANT. 



25 



n "^ 




it F^^»i 



26 COTTON. [tll.\l>. I. 

extensively as its western congener, and is found in cultivation 
in nearly the same regions." 

Life History of the Cotton Plant. The habit or life history 
is approximately similar in h()i\\^^]^ G^iW^acmrrr-mi^the-f^ 
Jt^imutii^^i ; germination occurs ra})idly, and the first appearance 
of the plant above the ground is from four to fourteen days 
from sowing. The young plant shown at Fig. 1 was photo- 
graphed a few hours after its appearance and the unfolding 
of the first two leaves. 

Two periods in the life of this plant may be distinguished. 
The first extends from the time of planting, which in South 
Carolina is about the middle of April to the middle of sum- 
mer. This is the time in which the plant makes its growth 
of stalk and foliage, and gathers nourishment, which will 
later be stored up in the seed. During this period tropical con- 
ditions are favorable, namely, the deposit of moisture on the 
soil from frequent rather than from long-continued rains, high 
temperature with small daily variation, plenty of sunshine, 
little wind, and a high relative humidity of the atmosphere 
to reduce evaporation to a minimum. During this period 
everything possible is done to prevent loss of water from the 
soil ; grass and weeds are scruj)ulously excluded, and the sur- 
face of the soil is frequently stirred to conserve the moisture 
and increase the temperature. 

In the second period the temperature rapidly falls and the 
rain fall diminishes ; this is the fruiting- season of the cotton 
crop, when every effort should be mad(^ to produce seed and 
lint rather than stalk and foliage. Evfery means is taken to 
dry up the soil, cultivation ceases, and the soil is allowed to 
become hard and compact to favor evkporation of the mois- 
ture. The exact date of the first sowing and the appearance 
of the first fiower with the commencement of the gathering 
of the crop are given in another chapter, but it may be advisa- 
ble to indicate something further of the life history of the 
cotton plant. Usually about forty days after the plant shows 



CHAP. I.] LIFE HISTORY OF THE COTTON" PLANT. 



27 




Fig. 2. Brandies frorq Cottori Plar;t, 
A —White flower. B — Red flower. C — Square. D — Young boll or capsule. 




Fig. 3. Braqcb,es fron\ Cotton Plaqt. 
A— Mature holls or capsules. B — Open bolls. 



28 COTTON'. [chap. I. 

above the around there appears the first square or bud. From 
the formation of this bud, twenty-four to thirty day.s elapse 
before the appearance of the flower. The bud or square is 
shown on Fig. 2 at C, and again on Fig. 4 at C. The flower 
on the first day of the opening of the bud is yellowisli white 
and has five petals. One peculiarity of the cotton plant is in 
the change of color of the flower. This, which on the first day 
is of a shade varying from a dull white to a canary, is found on 
the second day to be of a distinctly pink or reddish hue ; tlie 
flower drops off on the third or succeeding day. The white 
flower is shown at A, Fig. 2, and again at A, Fig. 4, whiU^ the 
red flower on the point of dropping oft' is shown at B, Fig. 2. 
After the petals fall on the third day, there remains the small 
boll enveloped in the calyx ; this develops until it becomes 
about the shape and size of a small hen's egg, and fifty to 
sixty days from the appearance of the fiower it bursts. Bolls 
in the early stage are shown on Fig. 2 at D, and on Fig. 4 at 
E. Large ones almost ready to burst may be found on Fig. 3 
at A. 

An interesting view of a cotton plant bearing squares, 
flowers, closed and open bolls, is shown in Fig. 5. 

There is a popular superstition \ajnqn^tlie_CQlored popula- ^ 
tion that twenty-seven days elaps^r^W^i the bud or square to > 
the flower, the flower remaifis thr^YVs on the plant, and 
that forty-seven days more elapse, atX^ie^-expiration of which 
period the boll has burst and the cotton is ready for picking. '^ 
While this may be accurate in many cases, the exact time -^ 
varies with the season and with climatic conditions. 

A self-explanatory diagram of an Egyptian cotton boll is 
shown at Fig. 6, taken from Dr. Bowman's valuable mono- 
graph on the Cotton Fibre. 

When the boll bursts it exposes three to five cells, divided 
by membraneous walls, and each of these cells contains seeds 
which are attached by filaments to the stem of the plant. 
The filaments ultimately disappear, leaving the seeds loose in 



^ I.] LIFE HISTOin' OF THE COTTON PLANT. 



29 




Fig. 4 Braqcti frorq Cottoq Plaqt. 
A — White flowt r. C — Square. D — Leaf. E — Young: boll or capsule. 



oO COTTON. 

the cavity covered Avith cotton. Each seed is entirely envel- 
oped by the cotton fibres attached to it, just as tlie human 
hair is attached to the head. 

The seeds vary in ininiber from thirty-two to thirty -six in 
each pod or Ih)]]. The view on Fig. 7 at A shows an empty 
pod or capsule, !> is the seed cotton out of one cavity of the 
pod just as it appears after it has been removed by the fingers 
of the cotton picker, C shows the individual seeds with fibres 
of which the mass B is composed. In the next view, at D, 
is a reproduction of sections of these seeds with the fibres 
radiating in all directions, each attached at one end to the 
seed. The appearance of the boll before bursting is shown 
clearly on Fig. 3 at A, while at B bolls of almost similar 
size and growth are shown as having just burst. Botanists 
differ as to the exact cause of the bursting of the Ijoll, but it is 
probably due to the increased space occupied by the fibre as it 
ripens and drys. 

The cotton |)lant l)egins to fiower in June and continues 
to do so until the early frost of winter. 

The writer has seen newly opened fiowers as late as Octo- 
ber 11th in the most northern part of the cotton belt, but flowers 
are probably seen even later than this. ( )f course these late 
flowers do not produce fruit. As a rule no flower opening- 
after the first week in September bears fruit. 

Structure of the Fibre. It may be news to many interest- 
ed in the cotton fibre to learn that the fibre itself, although 
apparently of such small diameter, is quite a complicated 
structure when examined under a microscope. The simplest 
description of a thoroughly develoi)ed cotton fil)re is perhaps 
that of a collapsed tube with corded edges twisted many 
times throughout its length and having the appearance of an 
elongated cork-screw or carpenter's auger. According to one 
authority a perfectly constructed fibre is composed of four 
distinct parts : ( 1 ) An outside membrane which forms the 
hard outside skin of the fibre; (2) the red cellulose or olea- 



CiiAi". I.] I'IFK HISTORY OF TITP: COTTON PLANT. 



■M 




Fig. 5. Cottori Plaqt sl:\oWirig leaves, floi 



per\ bolls. 



32 COTTON. [chap. 1. 

ginous deposit which forms about 85 per cent, of the fibre ; 
( 3 ) a central sj)iral fibre of a harder nature than the rest of 
the fibre, and ( 4 ) a matter secreted in the centre tube similar 
to that which occupies the core of a quill. Covering the 
outside membrane is what we might term a viscous varnish, 
but what is generally known as cotton wax. Tins wax 
amounts to about one-half per cent, of the whole. Tlie views 
shown in Figs. 15 to 40 represent cotton fibres from various 
parts of the world, and the twisted formation which has been 
previously described is readily recognized. It is the fact of 
the existence of these convolutions which assists in the forma- 
tion of a strong thread from a comparatively weak fibre such 
as cotton. In the formation of a thread the convolutions 
inter-lock with one another and hel}) to resist any tension put 
on the yarn. These convolutions are less and less frequent as 
the fibre is less matured, and are almost altogether absent in 
the immature fibre, which has merely the appearance of a 
fiattened ribbon when examined under a microscope. This 
immature fibre is transparent and has a glossy appearance, so 
that when it exists in any quantity in a bale of cotton it can 
be readily detected with the naked eye. It has the feature 
of not taking dye so readily as ripened cotton. 

The reason of the existence of this immature fibre may be 
because some obstruction has been caused to the fiow of sap 
in the i)lant, or some accident has occurred by vvliich the 
twigs carrying the cotton bolls have been bruised or broken, 
or that the cotton has been gathered without having had time 
to fully ripen after the bursting of the boll. It is of great 
importance that the existence of the immature fibre should be 
detected in the samples from which the cotton is purchased. 
One of the best views of the cotton fibre under the micro- 
scope that I have seen is given at Fig. 8. 

Dr. Bowman describes a typical cotton fibre as " a long 
tubular compound vegetable cell, from 1,200 to 1,500 times as 
long as it is broad. The outer or enswaithing sheath of this 



CHAP. I.] 



STRUCTURE OF THE FIBRE. 



33 




Fi^. 6 Lorigitudiqal aqd Trar\verse Sectioi] of Egyptian Cottoq Pod. 

A — Stem. B — Section of Calyx. C — Section of Carpel. D — Mid web with seeds attached. 
E — Section of Seeds. G — Plexus of young Cotton Fibre. 



34 



COITON. 



[(•ir\i'. I. 





CHAP. I.] 



STRUCTURE OF THE FIBRE. 



35 



is a continuous liber cell of pure cellulose, similar to those 
which occur at the outside of the cambium-layer of dicotyle- 
dons, or the cells which form the outer part of the fibro- 
vascular bundles of inonocotyledons, and which are also found 
in the branches of those containing no spiral structures ; and 
the inner or thickening layers of the tube consist of second- 
ary cellular deposits u})on this outer epidermic layer, or else 
are formed bv a uradual thickenino- of that laver itself arising 




Fig. 8. Microscopic Yie-W of Cottoq Fibres. 



from the consolidation of the protoplasm or juices which sup- 
ply nutriment, and whicli, by in some measure preventing 
the collapse of the thin outer sheath, strengthen and render it 
more elastic and expansible. The extreme outer layer appears 
to be formed of a continuous membrane, since no power which 
I have been able to apply to the microscope has enabled me 



36 COTTON. [chap. I. 

to detect even the most minute openings through its sub- 
stance, and it is on this elementary pellicle that the cellular 
layers which appear to form the thickness of the tube walls 
are deposited in such a manner that they are, while united 
to it, still capable of being separated from it into distinct 
lamina?. 

I am aware that there are many botanists who make a dis- 
tinction between the primary layer of liber cells and the thin 
pellicle which forms the sheath of such a vegetable hair as 
cotton, but, after all, the difference is one only of degree and 
not of kind, since it is extremely probable that the thickening 
of these hair walls arises from the successive deposits which 
occur within them during the process of growth, exactly in 
the same way as within the liber cell of wood fibre, only that 
these secondary deposits are not concentric like the layers 
within the liber cell of wood fibre, but consist in the 
development of a series of cells one over the other, whose 
walls are collapsed in upon each other, and which do not, 
except with the use of reagents, usually exhibit any signs of 
cellular structure ; and in section from their extreme tenuity 
they can hardly be distinguished from a thickening of tlie 
outer pellicle or sheath itself Hence, in the process of growth 
from the first formation of the hair within the boll to the 
mature fibre as it is fully ripe and ready for picking, we have 
every possible stage of this formation presented to us, from 
the immature fibre, where the thickening of the outer sheath 
has not yet begun, up to the perfectly ripe cotton. 

In that stage of early growth, either within the unopened 
l)oll or just after its first opening, whore the length of the tube 
is almost reached, a cross section of the hair presents us with 
a single line like the cross section of a steel band, presenting 
no structure or, at most, only a single line to indicate that it 
has any internal opening, the same as would be exhibited by 
an exceedingly thin tube squeezed flat under such pressure as 
to completely collapse the tube and form it into a ribbon. As 



CHAI'. I.] MEASUREMENTS OF THE COTTON FIDRE. 87 

the development of the hair proceeds the thickness of the tube 
walls increases, and the ribbon-like structure gives place to a 
more and more distinct tubular form, when a central opening- 
appears down the centre of the oval hair section. 

In the i)erfectly ripe cotton the tubular form is distinctly 
seen in section, although from the want of strengthening 
layers in the spiral form, which always give increased rigidity, 
the shape is ver}^ seldom cylindrical ; indeed, I have never 
seen it so except at the extreme end of the fibre, where there 
appears to be a tendency to form a more solid structure on 
nccount of the less diameter of the tube in proportion to the 
thickness of the walls." 

Measwrements of the Cotton Fibre. ^lany measurements 
have been made by various observere, among whom are Dr. 
Bowman, mentioned above, the well known English authority 
on cotton and wool fibres, H. Monie, Evan Leigh, O'Neill, 
M. Deschamps, and others, but the measurements do not 
agree in all cases. 

The fact is that cotton fibres even from the same seed vary 
considerably in length and relatively in diameter, and only 
approximate measurements can be given. The diameter of a 
cotton fibre varies from to^ttt to toVVt of ^m inch, and the 
length of the fibre from h inch to 2^ inches. Dr. Bowman is 
the authority for stating that there are 140,000,000 fibres in a 
jiound. 

Some very interesting measurements, admirable in their 
completeness, were made in connection with the tenth census 
of the United States by Pi'of. Ordway, and refer entirely to 
American cotton. 

The general average for cottons of the United States is 
given by him as follows : 

f inches 1.10 



^^"-^'UmillitBeters 

lioVo '"ill i meter 

oi. xi ( grains 
Strength \ '^ 

* i grams 



27-8!) 

0.91 

28.00 

125.60 

8.14 



3S 



COTTON. 



This was o])tain('(i from detailed 
follows : — 



[clIAI'. I 

stMtistics by states as 



AVERAGES P^OR EACH STATE. 



StKtC. 



Alabama 

Arkansas 

Arizona 

California 

Florida.. 

Georgia 

Indian Territory 
Louisiana .... 

Mississippi 

Missouri 

North Carolina. 
South Carolina. . 

Tennessee 

Texas 

Virginia 

Total 



60 
13 

4 
19 
45 
52 

2 

24 

18 

6 

94 
26 

7 

72 



450 



1427 
1.14.-5 
1.192 
1.66'.) 
n.910 
*1.572 
1.140 
1.267 
1.282 
1.260 
1357 
*1.996 
1.131 
1.380 
1.366 



0.789 
0.965 
0.745 
0.827 
0.854 
0.806 
1.023 
0.862 
0.810 
0.907 
0.695 
0.766 
0.821 
0.819 
0.883 



1027 
1.036 
0.969 
1079 
1 :]84 
1.066 
1 .081 
1.069 
1.047 
1.098 
1.058 
1.234 
0.992 
1.075 
1.060 



0.896 
0917 
0.957 
0.921 
0.793 
0.913 
0905 
0.882 
0.957 
0.890 
0.929 
0.957 
0.898 
0.897 
0.945 



^ 




















S= e 








bD oj 


o to 






03 


(50 


(U 


<D 


03 


^ 


137.8 


12.38 


134.7 


13.36 


133.7 


11.96 


144 6 


12 58 


124.1 


12.64 


136.9 


12 80 


1193 


13.42 


127.5 


13.01 


134.3 


1211 


136.4 


12.76 


132.7 


12.55 


120 3 


11.80 


133. .3 


12.33 


132.8 


13.07 


126.1 


14 00 







32.96 
32 85 
27.91 
32 01 
29.14 
33.18 
31.87 
33.08 
34.01 
31.62 
33.21 
31.62 
33.10 
32.34 
34 44 



* Including Sea Island samples. 



cHAi'. I.] ciiKMicAF, coMi'osrnox ok cotton. 39 

Chemical Composition of Cotton. Many clieinical analyses 
of the fibres or lint have been made, but the most reliable 
analysis of American cotton was a determination of the proxi- 
mate constituents found by the Tennessee Experimental Sta- 
tion to be as follows : — 

Water 6.74 per cent. 

Ash 1.(55 '• 

Protein l.o " " 

Fibre 83.71 " 

Nitn\oen-fVee extract .... n.7\) " " 

Fill 0.01 " " 



100.00 



showing that in its crude state, at lea.st, it is far from being 
the pure cellulose it is often stated to be, a fact abundantly 
proved by other investigations. 

Pure cotton fibre of which So. 71 per cent, is shown in the 
above analysis, is cellulose, a white substance, the chief constit- 
uent of all vegetable matter. It belongs to the class of carbo- 
hydrates, so called because it is a combination of carbon, 
hydrogen and oxygen, the two latter being present in the 
proper proportions to form water. 

In order to arrive at this cellulose in analysing cotton 
fibres, it is necessary to remove all impurities by treating the 
fibre with various solvents, water, alcohol, ether and dilute 
acids. None of these will dissolve the cellulose, but they will 
remove all impurities which are likely to be found in cotton. 
The fibre itself can only be dissolved b}'' concentrated sulphuric 
acid or by an ammoniacal solution of cupric hydrate. 

Careful investigation of several analyses shows that 
probably not more than 86.5 or ST per cent, is })ure cellulose, 
even in the purest samples, and so large a proportion as 
thirteen per cent, of other substances being found in cotton, 
we cannot, therefore, consider cotton to be pure cellulose. In 
fact, there is a considerable quantity of mineral and other 
solid matter in cotton, which can best be detected by burning 



40 



COTTON. 



[CIIAI". I. 



the fibre at a low temperature and analysing the ash remain- 
ing. Perhaps the most reliable investigations on this i)oint 
have been made by Messrs. Davis, Dreyfus and Holland. 
They took a portion from twelve different varieties of cotton, 
burned these to a white ash and mixed the ash from the twelve 
different samples together, afterwards analysing them. After 
deductino- the sand the amounts were : — 



Carbonate of potassium . 
Chloride of potassium 
Sulphate of potassium 
Carbonate of sodium or soda ash 
Phosphate of magnesium . 
Carbonate of magnesium . 
Carbonate of calcium or lime . 
Peroxide of iron or ferric oxide 



?)o.22 i)er cent., soluble in water, 
10.21 " " " " " 

13.02 " " " " " 



8.73 per cent. 
7.81 " " 
20.26 " " 
3.40 " " 



insoluble in water. 



100.00 



The above table gave the analysis of the ash, but did not 
state what proportion this bore to the bulk of the cotton, but 
the same analysts also conducted a series of experiments to 
determine the amount of sand and mineral matter contained 
in different classes of cotton. The samples were taken out of 
the bales upon their arrival in Liverpool. The following are 
the results : 



Dhollerah 

Sawginned Dharwar 
Bengal . 

Sawginned Broach 
Oomrawuttce 
Egyptian Brown . 
Peruvian, (soft) 
Pernam 
American 
Sea Island 
Egyptian White . 
Peruvian, (rough) 



0.22 
4.16 
3.98 
3.14 
2.52 
1.73 
1.68 
1.60 
1.52 
1.25 
1.19 
1.15 



per cent. 



It will be seen from these figures that some varieties are 
very low in ash, such as Sea Island, rough Peruvian and 



CHAP. I.] MOISTURE IX CC/rTON. 41 

white Egy[)tian : while others of them, such as Dhollerah, 
Dharwar, liengal and Broach contain considerable quantities. 
Some of the latter, especially the Dhollerah, contain large 
quantities and are very dirty. As a rule, it may to taken 
for granted that an excess of ash much above one per cent, 
arises from the presence of sand and carbonate of lime, which 
being only mechanical im})urities will be removed by the pro- 
cesses through which the fil)re is passed in manufacturing 
it into yarn. 

Moisture in Cotton. There is a quantity of water always 
present in cotton, which cannot be driven out by a moderate 
heat, and, in fact, after it has been expelled by excessive 
heat, is replaced by a percentage of moisture from the atmos- 
phere after the super heated cotton is allowed to stand in 
the open air. This water which exists in cotton naturally is 
given in the above analysis made in Tennessee, as 6.74 per 
cent ; it is given by Dr. Bowman as from five to seven per cent. , 
and these figures are confirmed by a number of tests that have 
been made by the writer personally. This moisture is neces- 
sary to the satisfactory manipulation of the fibre in spinning, 
and if for any reason a portion of this natural moisture is 
driven out the spinning of the yarn is rendered more difficult 
until the moisture is replaced in the air. This natural 
moisture may be called the water of hydration, as distin- 
guished from artificial moisture added in order to weight cotton, 
or absorbed by the cotton when lying on the open railroad 
platforms, or in the yards of the cotton ginnery or ftirms. 
Usually there is from one to two per cent, of moisture in cotton 
which can be driven out at a temperature of sevent}^ to seventy- 
five degrees Fahrenheit in a dry room, and which is not reab- 
sorbed by the cotton when it is placed in the open air under 
normal conditions. Quite a number of tests that have been 
made by the writer with American cotton tends to show that 
the excess of water above the water of hydration averages 
about one and one-fourth per cent. 



42 {■OTTON. [tii.M-. I. 

Cotton "Wax. Dr. Schunck in the proceedings of tlie 
Manchester, England, Literary and Philosopliical Society, coni- 
municated considerable information on analyses of cotton and 
especially cotton wax. 

This is a fatty substance found in very slight (juantities 
coating the cotton fibre. The analysis of this wax, which is 
present from one-half to one per cent, in American, is given as 
carbon, 80.38, hydrogen, 14.r)l, and oxygen, o.ll per cent. 
The wax fuses at 186. 8 degrees Fahrenheit and solidifies at 
179.0 degrees Fahrenheit. 

Other Fibres. It is sometimes necessary to determine 
whetlier a fabric or a yarn is made of cotton or not, and while 
the experienced manufacturer is usually able to detect this l)y 
the appearance of the fobric, there are several tests which can 
be applied. In the first place a microscope is useful, as the 
appearance of the cotton fibre when highly magnified is 
difterent from that of silk, linen, or wool ; the wool fibre being- 
covered with overlapping scales, silk being smooth like a glass 
rod, and linen showing the vascular fibre bundles which make 
up the complete fibre. 

The difference between cotton, wool, flax and other fibres 
is admirably shown in figures No. i>, 10, 11 and 12. These 
have been prepared by Mr. Henry G. Kittredge, the editor of 
" The Textile World," Boston, Mass., from investigations made 
by him on the nature of textile fibres. Figure 9 shows an 
immature cotton fibre a week before the opening of the boll, 
immediately before the opening of the boll, and also some 
considerable time before the opening. It also indicates the 
convolution of the cotton fibre as exemplified in American 
Uplands, Peruvian and Japanese cottons. The flax fibre from 
which linen yarn is made, and also the ramie or China grass 
fibres are shown on Fig. 10. The flax fibre is built up of 
fibre bundles only noticeable under the microscope and which 
are indicated in Fig. 10, which has been magnified four 
hundred times. The wool fil)re is shown in Fip-. 11 and it 



■•] 



OTIIKK Fir.KKS. 



43 



will be noticed especialh^ on the third fibre, the American 
merino wool, that it is covered with scales overlapping one 
another. If a section were pre[)ared it would show saw-like 
edges. The existence of these serrations accounts to a large 
extent for the felting property of wool and for the fact of 
woolen goods shrinking after being wet. Fig. 12 shows a 




Fig. 9. Ripe ar\d Unripe Cottoq Fibres. 



transverse section of wool fibres, while Fig. 11 shows trans- 
verse sections of cotton fibres. 

In addition to the microscopical test another is made by 
l:)urning a small portion of the yarn or fabric : in the case of 
cotton, this usually burns with a flash, leaving a ver}^ light 
ash. Animal fibres, on the contrary, such as silk and wool, 



44 



COTTON. 



[ciiAi-. J. 



burn more slowly, emitting an offensive odor and leaving a 
curled bead, or lump of carbonized matter. Chemical tests 
may also be made by wliicli the nature of the fibre may be 
determined without any doubt. 

In applying chemical tests to determine the fil)re of which 
a yarn or fabric is manufactured, the first test is to find out 



R a Tn 1 e 







5 3 


1 


2 


4 




1 




: , 


' 


4-. 


. 






1 



Fig. 10, Flax arid Rarriie Fibres. 



whether it is an animal or vegetable fibre. The best test for 
this purpose is to boil the material in caustic potash lye, e. g. 
a solution containing about five per cent, of the caustic soda. 
After boiling about ten minutes, it will be found that all the 
animal matter is dissolved, and then the material must be 
washed in Avater to remove the caustic soda. Whether the 



I.] 



OTHER FIBRES. 



45 



fibre mixed with the cotton is wool or silk, the test removes 
either of these animal substances. 

Fig. 13, which is another view prepared by Mr. H. G. 
Kittredge, exhibits fibres at different stages of dissolution 
under Schweitzer's solution, previously named as an ammonia- 
cal solution of oxide of copper. INlr. Kittredge sa.ys : — 




ogctiohi of Coftoi'i Fibrps 
A'at ure fn) mat are 




" This is the only known liquid in which cellulose dissolves 
without undergoing a chemical change, and its peculiar action 
on cotton is something of very recent discovery and publicity. 
Charles O'Neill, an English chemist of repute, was attracted to 
the action of this solution upon the cotton fibre, thirty-four 
years ago, but his inferences were disputed or held in doubt for 



46 



COTTON. 



[chap. I. 



many years, or until 1883, when so excellent an authority 
on the use of the microscope as John Butterworth, of Shaw, 
England, confirmed the correctness of Mr. O'Neill's observa- 
tions, which are diauraminatized at '' O " and "()()" Fiff. 1;]. 
The results of Mr. Butterworth's experiments inspired me to 
try them, and I was happily successful ; but the phenomenon 



Split Hum an Han- 




Fig. 12. Wool ar\d Hair. 



at C is something I have never been able to get, owing, possi- 
bly, to my not using strong enough magnifying power. The 
longitudinal stride, as seen in hgurc (), and evolved at A, can 
be seen while the fibre is undergoing its transformation, but not 
otherwise. The binding threads at B form a feature of intense 
interest to the observer as the fibre i)asses through its meta- 



CHAI'. I.] 



()Tin:i; i'ii'.i;i:,s. 



47 



inoi'phic career. If the solution is strono- and the swelHng of 
the fibre rapid, these thread-like bands sometimes Ijurst and 
throw out tiny ends, as will be seen at I). The striated 
character of the tiljre and the internal spiral core is seen in 
figure O ( ). Figures X to XXXXX are true rej)resentations 
of cotton fibres at moments of cessation to the infiuence of 




Cotton.- rdeo.1 "0 0" 



Fig. 13. Cortoq Fibres Under Ct^erqical fictior^. 



Schweitzer's solution. These were obtained under a magnify- 
ing power of 400 diameters. The thread-like bands are to be 
seen at B, the exj)anded stride at A, and the spiral core at C. 
Figure XXXXX shows a fibre that has assumed a knotted twist, 
one of the many shapes cotton fibres take in their convulsions 
when submitted to the action of the foregoing solution. The 



48 COTTON. [chap. i. 

bands B seem to be of tougher substance than the rest of the 
fibre, as they sometimes are alone left in the field of vision. 
The query, of course, naturally arises, what are the functions 
or meanings of these bands or rings, and core? The problem 
thus presented remains unsolved. Still it possesses this advan- 
tage, that any fibre having these characteristics is assuredly 
cotton and nothing else. My observation has been that an 
ammoniacal solution of oxide of copper acts quicker upon 
new than upon old cotton. This I attribute to the outside 
membrane of old cotton being less soluble, or more difhcult 
of penetration, due to the hardening of the waxy covering." 

Bleached flax has about the same chemical composition 
as bleached cotton, and it is difficult to tind a chemical test 
that is of any service in indicating the difference between the 
fibres. Perhaps the best chemical test is to again use the 
caustic soda solution of considerable strength. In this case, 
the linen becomes deep yellow wliile the cotton is only slightly 
tinged. There are certain dyes which, when applied cold, give 
a very deep shade on silk, a light shade on wool, and an almost 
colorless effect on cotton. Magenta is one of these dyestuffs. 

With a judicious combination of chemical and microscopi- 
cal tests, the nature of the fibre entering into the manufacture 
of any fabric can be accurately determined. 

Strength of the Cotton Fibre. The strength of individual 

cotton fibres varies from 75 to 300 grains, according to the 

kind of cotton, the distance between the points of suspension 

in making the test, and the portion of the fibre selected for 

the test. The fibre being weaker at the end furthest from the 

seed of course supports a smaller weight when the test is made 

with the points of suspension at each end of the fibre. This 

is proved by five different experiments on the same fibre of 

Sea Island cotton. 

1st test 1.7 inch broke with 18.1 grains at .5 inch from one end. 
2d test l.O " " " 70.9 " " .1 " " " " 
3d test .8 " " " 97.1 " " .1 " " " " 

4th test .5 " " " 126.2 " " .2 ' " 

5th test .2 " " " V.\?,.o " 



CHAP. I.] COTTONS OF THE WORLD. 49 

The first tost was made with 1.7 inch between the points 
of suspension when the fibre broke with a strain of eighteen 
grains. The fifth test had only .2 inch between the points 
of suspension and the fibre supported I'-VA grains. Taking an 
average of about rl inch between the points of suspension and 
selecting that portion of the fibre furthest away from the 
tapering end, or in other words, nearer to the root, the average 
breaking weights have been found to be as under: — 

Edisto Sea Island 83.9 grains 

Another sample, Sea Island . . . 90.0 

Third sample, Sea Island 102.6 " 

Amerie-an Upland Cotton .... 104.5 

Egyptian 108.0 

American Mobile Cotton .... 118.8 

American Orleans 139.7 

Pernambuco, Brazilian .... 140.2 

Dhollerah, Indian 141 9 " 

Comptah, Indian 163.7 " 

Cottons of the "World. While the cotton crop of the 
United States is the most important in the world, and the 
most useful, in fact, b*eing of such importance that the price 
of American cotton practically controls the price of other cot- 
tons, there are numerous cotton fields in various parts of the 
world where extensive crops are raised, and the product used 
for purposes for which American cotton cannot be utilized. 

The most im[)ortant cotton growing countries after the 
United States are India, Egypt, China, and Brazil. 

A diagram ( Fig. 14 ) shows the proportion of cotton 
raised in several countries to the world's crop in 1895-6, from 
information supplied by Col. Shepperson. 

Sea Island cotton of the United States represents the 
highest as regards quality, is spun in the finest yarn, and used 
very largeh^ for thread, laces, and fine cambrics. Next 
approaching in fineness of quality and length of staple is the 
Brown Egyptian cotton, so called because of its brownish 
tinge, which is a distinctive feature of this fibre. This is 



50 



COTTON. 



[CIIAI'. I. 




CHAI'. I.] 



COTTONS OF THP: WORLD. 



51 



td O 02 03 CC CO 

T ffl 'B (D 2 ro 

n 5' si s; ^ 2! 

-•"■ fo fo ;; fo 

M kH S 3 3 3 



?4 w 



o. :i. " a 



■■2. H ►^ O « IQ- 



u 



?3 p3 cc OD > <; 

5' g 11 5- E 



a. (t 



2 '< 3 



ft 5 2 'T! g o 

)< Hj E= M ^ m 



'^. 5-' 5 



2. w - 




Ol COTTON. [chap. i. 

very largely used for tine cotton yarns and goods of all vari- 
eties. Among other long staple cottons, which are not impor- 
tant commercially, are the Tahiti Sea Island, the Peruvian 
cotton, the White Egyptian, and the Egyptian ( Jallini cottons. 
The next grade of cotton of any importance is known as Bra- 
zilian. It has a staple somewhat longer than the average 
American cotton, but is somewhat rough in appearan-ce and 
touch. The American cottons form the next class as regards 
quality, varying from the fine Mississippi cottons, Peelers, 
Benders, to the short clean Uplands cotton. 

China produces one of the largest crops of cotton, after 
the United States, which is almost all consumed in that coun- 
try. It is a beautiful white cotton, somewhat harsh to the 
touch, but unfortunately for its commercial importance is 
comparatively short staple, being about the length of the 
shortest American Upland cotton. The East India crop is 
also large, but is regarded as being both the dirtiest and the 
shortest staple cotton produced. 

Owing to the long seasons of considerable heat required 
in order to bring cotton to maturity, this fibre can only be 
profitably cultivated in certain regions bordering on the north 
and south of the equator. This is usually described in text 
books as being the regions bounded by the line of latitude 
45° north and 35° south of the equator, l)ut no such arbitrary 
divisions can be made, as the isothermal lines have to betaken 
into account ; for instance, a line drawn along 45° north lati- 
tude, includes such districts as New England, portions of 
Nova Scotia and Canada, wdiere it is impossible to grow cotton, 
while if the lines were drawn about 38° north latitude, which 
is the northern limit of cotton grown in the United States, it 
would exclude i)0]'tions of Turkestan, Southern Italy, Greece 
and other districts where it is possible to cultivate the cotton 
plant with success. Thus an isotherm must be followed along 
the lines of equal temperature in the northern hemisphere, 
and another isothermal line in the southern hemisphere. 



CHAP. I.] 



COTTONS OF THE WOKLD. 



53 




54 ('(/rTox. [chap. I. 

This practically iiiclades on the American continent, all 
the southern states of the Union, including portions of Vir- 
ginia, North Carolina, Tennessee, all of Georgia, South Carolina, 
Alabama, Mississippi, Texas, Louisiana, Arkansas and parts of 
Indian Territory, Southern California and Florida, Mexico and 
Central American Republic ; also in South America, Peru, 
the Argentine, Brazil, Venezuela, Guiana. 

In Europe, the Islands of Malta, Sicily and southern por- 
tions of Spain, Italy, parts of Greece and Turkey. 

In Asia, includes Arabia, Persia, Turkestan, India, China, 
Japan and some of the islands in the Malay Archipelago. 

In Africa a very large region is suited for the cultivation 
of cotton, but at present it is cultivated only in Egypt, in some 
of the countries on the western coast and a little in South 
Africa. 

In Australasia, (Queensland is suited for the cultivation of 
cotton, as also are the Fiji Islands. A diagram on page 50 
gives the quantities grown proportionately in each of the lead- 
ing cotton producing countries of the world, and is instructive 
in showing the relative importance of these countries, according 
to the quantities they raise. Figs. 16 and 17 are two views 
showing the relative lengths of staple of cottons from various 
countries, and below will be found a table showing the relative 
importance of cottons raised in various countries according to 
quality : 

A list of the more important varieties, with the best cot- 
tons first, is : — 

Sea Island. 

Peruvian. 

Brown Egyptian. 

Brazilian. 

American. 

Chinese and Indian. 
This list could be largely extended, but further details 
are given on succeeding pages. 



CHAP. 1.] 



SEA ISLAND COTTON. 



£)5 



Sea Island Cotton. Sea Island cotton is the name used 
connnei'cially to indicate the United States Sea Island cotton. 
This is grown on Edisto, St. Helena, Port Royal, James and 
John Islands oil' the coast of South Carolina, St. Simon and 
Cumberland Islands off the coast of Georgia, and others. It 
is recognized as being the best cotton that is grown in any part 
of the world. Very careful attention is given to its cultivation 
and ginning, (|uality being considered before quantity, and 
thus Sea Island cotton has a long, hue, strong and silky staple 
with comparatively regular convolutions, of a diameter from 



j_ 






o 



<^ 



<9 



_.3 d_ 



^ 
^ 










H=^ 



.^ 












(A) 

G3 



^ 



/ 



o 



D 
(3 

y 

(01 



%: 



Fig. 15. Americau Cotton Fibres, sections 
to scale lOBo inch between parallel lines. 

1. Gulf or Orleans. 4. Peelers. 

2. Benders. 5. Nashville. 

3. Memphis, (>. Allan seed. 

.0004 to .000(3 of an inch, ranging in length from one and 
three-eighths to two and one-fourth inches. It is largely used 
for thread and lace making purposes, and is regularly spun 
from loOs to 400s yarn, and occasionally even for commercial 
purposes as high as 600s. It is said that numbers 2150s were 
spun from Sea Island cotton at the great exhibition of London 
in 1851. The leading American market for Sea Island cotton 
is Charleston, South Carolina. 

Where a very strong fibre is required for heavy yarns Sea 
Island is sometimes used, as for example, the linings of bicycle 



56 



COTTON. 



[CIIAI'. I. 



tires, sail clotli, and so on. Figs. 18 and 1*.) show views of Sea 
Island cotton as seen under the microscope. 

Sea Island cotton is ginned altogether by the roller gin. 
The crop is about 1)3,000 bales per annum. The variety Flor- 
ida Sea Island, so called, is grown on the mainland of Florida 
from Sea Island seed. This is somewhat inferior to the Sea 
Island proper. It is a very useful cotton for yarns which 
require to be a little better than those made from Egyptian 
cotton. It has a white, glossy, strong fibre, a little coarser 





Fig. IS. Sea Island Cotton, extra fine. Long- 
itudinal views to scHle j^„r, in^'t' between 
parallel lines. 



Fk;. 19. Sea Island Cotton. Sections to scale 
jiiVis inch between parallel lines. 

1. E.xtra fine. 3. Florida. 

2. Tahiti. 4. Georgia. 



than strict Sea Island, and is nut quite so carefully cultivated. 
It is suited for yarns from 150s to 200s. Other Sea Island 
cottons are described under African and Australian cottons. 
See Tal)le of Long Staple Cottons. 

American Cotton. While the above Sea Islands cottons 
are American, this name is seldom a})plied to them, but is used 
to indicate the typical cotton of the world, which is grown in 
the Southeiii States of the American Union and used in all 
parts of the world where cotton spinning mills exist. The 
cotton described commercially as American is suited for 



CHAP. I.] 



AMERICAN C'( )TT()X. 



O/ 



medium numbers of yarn, is usually clean, fairly regular in 
length of staple, satisfactorily graded, and consequently is one 
of the most reliable and useful cottons for a manufacturer's 
use. The quantity is greater than that produced in all other 
parts of the world together, and consequently the price of 
American cotton in Liverpool, which is the greatest market 
for it, regulates the price of cotton throughout the world. 

American cotton may be divided into three important 
classes : New Orleans or Gulf cotton. Uplands or Boweds, and 
Texas cotton. # 




Fk;. 'JO. (Jrleans or Gulf CoUon, Aineriean. 
Longitudinal views to scale iiAjit 'iich 
between parallel lines. 



New Orleans or Gulf cotton usually consists of cotton 
raised in the basin of the Mississippi river, including the states 
of Louisiana, Mississippi, parts of Arkansas and Alabama. 
The name Gulf cotton is more usually applied in America from 
the fact that most of this cotton is shipped to ports on the Gulf 
of Mexico, especially New Orleans. In Europe the word New 
Orleans is usually applied, and is derived from the shipping 
port of that name. This style of cotton may be subdivided 
into others, known as Memphis, Benders, Allan-seed, Peelers 
and so on ; these being the names originally intended to repre- 
sent certain styles of cotton, but which have been very much 
misapplied of late years. 



58 



("OTTOX. 



[chap. I. 



New Orleans or Gulf cotton (Fig. "iO) is from one to one 
and one-fourth inches in length of staple, from .0004 to .0007 of 
an inch in diameter, and is usually used for yarn from '28s to 
44s warp and from 50s to 70s filling or weft. It is not usual 
to spin below these numbers, unless higher grade yarns are 
required. The lenders or Bottom Land cotton (Fig. 21) 
supposed to be grown at the bends of the Mississippi River, 
which are occasionally flooded and consequently well fertilized 
by the silt of the river, is one of the best grades of New 
Orleans cotton, and is used for the hio-lier numbers named 




Fig. 21. Benders Cotton. American. Longi- 
tudinal views to scale iJoo incli between 

lianillel lines. 



above. Peelers is a somewhat similar cotton, is used for similar 
yarns, is bluish-white rather then ci'eam colored, and some- 
what resembles short Florida Sea Island. 

Uplands cotton ( Fig. '12 ) is gi'own in the undulating 
country between the ocean and the mountains in the states of 
Georgia, North and South Carolina, Alrginia and Alabama. 
It is usually used for filling yarns or weft yarns between 
numbers 30s and 40s, although it may be spun up to 45s or 50s 
if required. The length of the staple is from three-fourths of 
an inch to one inch and the fibre in diameter is from .0006 to 
.0007 of an incli. This cotton is usuallv verv clean. 



CHAP. I ] CENTKAL AND SOUTH AMERICAN COTTONS. 



59 



The cultivation of Texas cotton (Fig. 23) is largely on the 
increase, and for coarse warp yarns this is the most suitable 
style of cotton. In dry seasons it is apt to be somewhat harsh 
and brittle, and cannot be relied upon as well as New Orleans 
or Uplands cotton. The staj^le is usually from seven-eighths 
to one inch in length, sometimes exceeding this, in diameter 
from .0005 to .0007 of an inch. Numbers 2()s and 32s warp 
yarns and 32s to 40s filling yarns are often made from Texas 
cotton, although it is eminently nseful for warp. 

Central and South American Cottons. The cotton croj) of 



^ 

^ 

■^\ 


\ 
^ 


% 


^ 


^ 


^ 


^ 


^ 


H 






T^K^ 






^fe 


^ 




%=^ 


h-cf"—-' — ' 


^^ 


s52ii 




'^'^ 


\^ 


^ 


^ 


^ 

^ 


^ 




^i^^^J 


^ 


^ 


A 




^^E 


^t:r- 


-^ 


^<^ 


^ 




^ ^"^ 






itJ^^S 


^ 


^ 



Fk;. 22. Uplands Cotion, American. Longi- 
tudinal views to scale ig'on i"ch between 
parallel lines. 



Mexico is not of very "^great importance, being about 50,000 
bales of 500 pounds each. The] cotton is usually clean, of 
cream color, but is not very strong. The staple is usually 
har.sh, and is the fruit of the cotton tree, which is a perennial. 
Undoubtedly a very much larger area can be used for the 
cultivation of cotton, especially in the zone along the Gulf of 
Mexico. The largest production of cotton is in the Laguna 
District in Central Mexico, about 400 miles from the United 
States frontier, in the province of (Jajaca, in C'ompeche and 
Yucatan. 



60 



COTTON. 



[CIIAF. I. 



Formerly a large quantity of cotton was raised in the West 
Indian Islands, Hayti or San Domingo, i\.nguilla, Porto Rico, 
and also in the British possessions in the northern part of 
South America, British and French Guiana, the principal vari- 
eties of which being Surinam, Berbice, Cayenne, Demerara ; 
also in the states of Columbia, Guatemala and Honduras and the 
countries now forming the Greater Republic of Central America. 

Owing to the increase of cultivation of sugar, and for other 
reasons, the growth of cotton has diminished considerably, 
until now there is very little grown in these countries, except- 




6? 



O 

^0, 






c? 



<9 



Q=p 



^(^ 



a 



© 






jJCI 



&"^ 



I 



& 



o 






Fig. 23. Texas Cotton, American. Longi- Fig. 2-J. Brazilian Cotton. Sections to scale 
tudinal views to scale ^o^on inch between ^^^^ inch between parallel lines, 

parallel lines. ^ Rio Grande. 4. Maceio. 

2. Paraiba. 5. Ceara. 

.".. Maranham. 6. Periiambuco. 

ing what is used in home manufactures,- and it is somewhat 
rare to find any -of these cottons in any of the open markets of 
the world. The sta})le is generally smooth and fine, the cotton 
runs from one and one-eighth to one an<l three-eighths inches 
in length, while the Island cottons are occasionally found as 
long as one and one-half inches. The brownest sample of 
cotton that the writer has seen was grown in Guatemala. 

The coast of northerii and north-eastern Brazil is one of 
the main sources of the world's cotton supply, and with greater 
enterprise and industry the crop could be immensely increased. 



CHAP. I.] CENTRAL AND SOUTH AMERICAN COTTON. 



61 



For several hundred miles along the coast, a belt of a])out 
fifty miles wide is devoted to the cultivation of sugar, and the 
upland region lying behind this is, for a considerable distance 
available for, and partially utilized in, the cultivation of cotton, 
thus forming a belt of country several hundred miles long 
and two hundred miles wide, on which long-staple cotton admir- 
ably suited for war}) yarn can be grown. 

The cotton is badly cultivated, badly ginned, large quanti- 
ties of seed being found with the lint, and little effort seems 
to be made to improve it. The cotton grown in all this section 




Fig. 25. Periiamlnico Cotton, Brazilinii. 
Longitudiual views to scale xo'dn inch 
between parallel lines. 



is of a comparatively uniform character, and is usually classed 
according to the seaport from which it is shipped. These 
ports are, Ceara, Maceio, Maranham, Bahia, Paraiba, Aracaju, 
Aracati, and so on. The iNhiranham and Ceara are considered 
to be about the best of Brazilian cottons, but there is not a 
very great deal of difference in quality between any of them. 
Pernam or Pernambuco are grown in the province of the latter 
name. The variety known as Santos was formerly cultivated 
from American seed, but is not now of much commercial 
importance. Brazilian cotton has a length of staple from one 
to one and three-eighths inches, and diameter of .OOOG to 



62 



COTTON. 



[chap. I. 



.0008 of an inch. The crop of 1803-4 was estimated at 
300,000 bales of 500 pounds, or about 900,000 of the Brazilian 
bales, wliich are only about one-third the weight of an American 
bale, being made so small on account of being carried to tlie 
coast from the cotton fields on horse or mule l)ack. Micro- 
scopical sectional views of several kinds of Brazilian cotton are 
shown in Fig. 24, and longitudinal views in Figs. 25 and 26. 
\^ery little cotton is exported from the Argentine, but 
with proper attention the cotton crop might be largely increased 
and made an important article of commerce. The writer has 




Fiii. 2G. Marauham Cotton, Brazilian. 
Longitudiual views to scale x^'nn inch 
between parallel lines. 



'examined a number of samples of excellent cotton grown in 
the interior provinces of the Argentine, of which theEioja and 
Parana varieties are the best, being from one and one-fonrth 
to one and one-half inches in length of staple, almost white 
in color. The Sanluis is fully as long, but has a reddish 
tinge, while the Catamarca, Salta and Sante Fe varieties are 
shorter, about three-fourths to one and one-fourth inches in 
length, of a decidedly reddish tint. All are black seed cottons. 
The only other cotton of any importance grown on the 
American continent is the Peruvian cotton. There are three 



CHAl'. I.] CENTRAL AND SOLTJI AMERICAN COTTONS. 



63 



varieties of tins cotton. — I'eruviaii Sea Island, Peruvian 
Rough, and Peruvian Smooth. The Rough Peruvian ( Fig. 
27 ) is the most important commercially on account of its 
great suitability for mixing with wool, because of its long, 
harsh, wiry fibre. Rough Peruvian varies from one and one- 
fourth inches to one and one-half inches in length, and from 
.0()0() to .(>()08 of an inch in diameter. It is usually used for 
warp yarns from 40s to 70s, one German authority giving 80s 
as possible numbers to be made from it. Some of the Rough 
Peruvian is very "high colored," and some of it," Red," is 




Fig. 27. Rough Peruvian Cotton. Longitu- 
dinal views to scale To'on iucli between 
parallel lines. 



raised on copper soil. Tlie Smooth Peruvian, an exotic from 
American seed, is of much shorter maximum length of staple, 
and more generally resembles Orleans or Gulf cotton, and is 
used for somewhat similar numbers. 

The Peruvian Sea Island, so called, is grown on the 
mainland from American Sea Island seed, and ranks almost 
equal to the Florida Sea Island. The length of staple is about 
one and one-half inches, in diameter from .0004 to .0007 of 
an inch, and is used for 100s to 150s yarn, usually for doub- 
ling purposes. It is not quite so clean as the so called Sea Is- 
land cotton from other countries. 



64 COTTON. [tliAP. I. 

Mr. Fr. Jac. Andres, of Boston, says, regarding Rough 
Peruvian cotton : — 

•' The nati\'e variety is a product of the ' (tossi/jiiinn I\'rit- 
viainmi,^ a perennial shrub growing from ten to fifteen feet 
high, and found in the tropical countries of South America, 
and most abundantly in the coast districts. It flowers and 
bears fruit for about seven years, though most abundantly and 
of the best quality after the rainy seasons in the second, third 
and fourth year's growth. The cotton yielded by this plant 
is long, strong, rough, crinkly staple (called vegetable wool), 
and therefore excellently suited for admixture with wool for 
many purposes of manufacture. Its price has no relation 
whatever to the value of other descriptions of cotton, but is 
regulated by the price of ' wool ' and the supply of liough 
Peruvian cotton." 

Egyptian Cotton. Among African cottons, the Eg3q3tian, 
of course, is the most important and the most valuable. For- 
merly it was cultivated only in the lower parts of the Nile 
valley, but during the last twenty years very great strides 
have been made in introducing the cultivation of cotton in 
upper and middle Egypt. Great attention has been given by 
the government to improve the methods of cultivation. Five 
to ten years ago there were probably more varieties of cotton 
cultivated in Egypt than in any other countr}^, including 
Gallini from Sea Island seed, Brown Egyptian from indigen- 
ous seed, and White Egyptian from American seed, but expe- 
rience has shown that the Brown Egyptian, known on the 
continent of Europe as Mako, or sometimes Jumel, is the most 
suitable and profital)le for cultivation. This is a variety of 
cotton which lends itself admirably to the processes of combing, 
and is used very largely in Europe, especially in Russia. 
The imports also in the United States are increasing year by 
year. One objection to the Brown Egyptian, or Mako, is its 
color. This varies from a dark cream to a brown, according 
to the variety of the cotton, and is caused by the presence of 



CHAP. I.] 



EGYPTIAN COTTON. 



65 



endochrome associated with the celhilose forming the fibrous 
sheath. One feature of this cotton is that its diameter is very 
regular. 

The size of the crop and the quality of the fibre depend 
very largely on the annual over-flow of the Nile, although the 
irrigation works, which are now being constructed under the 
guidance of the British government, are helping to render the 
farmers somewhat more independant of the annual flood. 

Extensive irrigation and drainage systems are in course 
of construction, which will doubtless greatly increase the area 












,'^ 



(S) 






'A 






jL^-dlL 



3 










% 




Fig. 2S. Egyptian Cottons. Sections to scale 
yo'oij inch between parallel lines. 

1. Brown Egyptian. 3. Gallini. 

2. White Egyptian. 4. .\shmouni. 

5. Smyrna, Asia Minor, cotton. 



Fig. 29. Brown Egyptian Cotton. Longi- 
tudinal views to scale y^^s inch between 
parallel lines. 



of cotton culture. Moreover, other crops are being abandoned 
to some extent and cotton substituted for them. 

The present production in Egypt is about 577,500,000 
})ounds of fibre, practically the whole of which is exported, 
and 22,275,000 bushels of .seed, of which the greater part is 
exported. 

Mako-Jumel, the name given to the variety of cotton first 
cultivated, experienced man}' changes and evolutions in 
Egypt, gradually changing its color to yellowish brown, and 
this new variety was known as Ashmouni, from the valley of 



6G ('OTTON. [CHA1>. I. 

Ashmoun, where this change was first noted. The princi])al 
varieties of Egyptian cotton are the Ashmouni, Mitafifi, Ixuiiia, 
Abbasi, and Gallini (Fig. 2<S ). For many years the Ash- 
mouni formed the bulk of the Egyptian crop, but it is now 
ahnost entirel}^ superseded by the Mitafifi. In color it is a 
lightish brown, and its staple is one and three-sixteenths to 
one and three-eighths inches in length. Its cultivation is 
continued in some parts of Egypt, but the production of this 
variety is decreasing every year. Sections of it are shown at 
4 in Fig. 28. In Upper Egypt, however, it is more exten- 
sively cultivated, the soil there being less favorable to Mitafifi. 

The Mitafifi cotton was discovered by a Greek merchant 
in the village of that name. The seed has a bluish-green 
tuft at tlie extremity, which attracted the merchant's attention, 
and on planting it, he found that it possessed decided advan- 
tages over the old Ashmouni. It is more hardy and also yields 
a greater })roportion of lint to the seed. At first from 815 
pounds of seed cotton 112 pounds of lint were secured, and 
sometimes even more. It is now somewhat deteriorated and 
rarely yields so much, averaging about 106 pounds of lint to 
315 of seed cotton. The Mitafifi is a richer and darker brown 
than the Ashmouni. The fibre is long, very strong, and fine 
to the touch, and is in greater demand, in fact it controls the 
market. It is shown in Fig. 29, reproduced from a micro- 
scropic view, and again in section at 1 in Figs. 28 and 30. 

Next to Mitafifi, Bamia is an extensively cultivated 
variety in Lower Egypt. It was discovered by a Copt in 1873. 
The plant is of a large size and coarse growtli. It is later and 
less hardy than the Mitafifi, and the fibre is poor as compared 
with that of the Mitafifi and Abbasi, light brown in color, and 
not very strong. In general it may be said this variety is 
inferior to Mitafifi in yield, hardiness and length and strength 
of fibre. 

Abbasi is a variety of recent introduction and is not yet 
very extensively grown. It was derived from the Mitafifi 



CHAP. I.] 



i<:gyi"1'[an cottox. 



67 



through the Zatiri. It resembles Mitaliti hut is somewhat 
earHer. The lint is of a beautiful white color, tine, silky, very 
long, though not so strong as ^litafifi, and the first two pick- 
ings command the highest price in the market. 

Attempts have been made for several years to introduce 
the white Abbasi cotton into the mills, but owing to its great 
variation in quality from one season to another these have not 
met with much success. Abbasi is cultivated in the Delta. 

Lower Egypt extends for about 150 miles from the sea, 
and includes the Delta of the Nile. Middle Egypt is still 




Fig. 30. Brown Egyptian Cotton. Sectional 
views to scale yn'on inch between parallel 
lines. 

1. Raw Cotton. :>. Mercerised. 

•2. Bleached. 4. Dyed. 




Fig. 31. Broach Cotton, Indian. Longitudi- 
nal views to .scale ^^Ti inches between 
parallel lines. 



farther south of Cairo, and Ui)per Egypt is about ")00 miles 
from tlie Mediterranean. 

The Delta is the district in which most of the P]gyptian 
cottons are cultivated, but considerable (juantities are raised in 
the Fayoum di.strict in Middle Egypt and also in Tpper 
P'gypt. In the Delta fogs are fretjuently the cause of a set 
back in the progress of the crops, and of damage to the plant 
and fibre. 

Egyptian cotton is from one and one-eighth to one and 
three-eighths inches in length and is usually spun in oOs to 100s 



68 



COTTON. [chap. I. 



warp yarn and 70s to 150 filling yarn, while a large (juantity 
is used for doubling or ply yarns. Fig. 30 shows sections of 
brown Egyptian cotton in the raw state, and again bleached, 
mercerised and dyed. 

Cotton is grown in other parts of Africa to a small extent, 
as for example, on the west coast, especially in Liberia, where 
some cotton of about one inch length of staple, of rather 
high color, dirty and irregular, somewhat resembling Brazilian 
cotton, is produced, but not much of it is exported ; and a 
small quantity is also grown in Natal and South Africa. 

The continent of Asia ranks next after America in quan- 
tity of cotton raised, India,. China, Japan, Corea, Turkestan 
and Asia ]\Iinor all contributing to this. 

Indian Cotton. India ranks, and perhaps always will 
rank, next to the United States as a cotton producing country. 
With an area of 1,367,000 square miles, lying south of the 
thirty-fifth degree of north l€«g4^t4«and wholly within the cot- 
ton belt, India is twice the size of that i)artof the United States 
known as the Cotton States, and possesses a good cotton soil, 
although hampered by an uncertain and discouraging climate. 
Bounded on the east, north and west by mountains, with moun- 
tain chains traversing the central territory, and subject to two 
periodical wet seasons, portions of her territory are rendered unfit 
for cotton growing, either by excessive rain fall, which in some 
sections amounts to -"JOO inches per annum, or by the lack of mois- 
ture in others, where the annual rain fall is scarcely an incli. 
Although cotton has been cultivated there for fully 4,000 years 
the increase in prodnction was but slight until stimulated by 
the diminished supply from the United States between 1861 
and 1805. During the cotton famine of this period, the culti- 
vation was pushed to its utmost extent, but when the United 
States regained its supremacy in cotton culture, the production 
of cotton in India was not pressed with so much vigor. At pres- 
ent the attention of the ryots has been turned to the produc- 
tion of the more profitable indigo and linseed, and it is probable 



CHAP. I.] 



INDIAN COTTON. 



GO 



tluit the i)roduetion of cotton will further decrease. The 
average yield in India varies in the different provinces from 40 
to KM) pounds of clean cotton per acre, dependent on the seasons. 

The part of liritish India, or Ilindostan, where cotton is 
raised, embraces four principal cotton regions ; the valley of 
the Ganges, the Deccan, western India and southern India. 

The Ganges valley is again divisible into two parts, the 
lower Bengal district and that of the northwest provinces, 
including Doab and Bundelcund, lying on both sides of the 
Ganges and Jumna rivers. 




Fig. :i2. Oomravvutlee Cotton, Indian. Longi- 
tudinal views to scale jJoo inch between 
parallel lines. 



In lower Bengal the cultivation of cotton is not of great 
importance. In the plain.s of Bengal, which are so fertile in 
other produce, the production of cotton is very considerable, 
and very little is exported. The cotton raised here in former 
times, though short in staple, was- the tinest known in the 
world, and formed the material out of which the very delicate 
and extremely beautiful Dacca muslin was manufactured. 
This interesting and indefinite variety of Gossypium herbaceinn 
i.^ known as Dacca cotton, and what little is raised is used at 
home in the looms of a few weavers at Bazitpore, and seldom 
finds its way to Calcutta. 



70 (,'OTTON. [C1IA1>. I. 

The border lands of the Ganges are too low and marshy, 
and the rain fall too great, for the successful cultivation of 
cotton, but tlic hills back from the river are suital)le for this 
purpose, as they are better drained. 

The Doab and Bundelcund districts produce almost tlie 
entire crop of the northwest provinces, and furnish about 
70,000,000 pounds of cotton for export, which is good " Indian 
cotton." The climatic character of these districts is " first a 
flood and then a drought," with an inclination to an insuffi- 
ciency of rain, in great contrast to that of lower Jk'ngal. 

The Deccan, Central India, is the great cotton section of 
of India. It occupies the triangular area lying south of the 
A^indhya mountians, in latitude 23° north, and extends to the 
valley of tlie Kistna, at 1()° north, with the eastern and western 
Ghauts on either side. It is an elevated tableland of undulat- 
ing surface, having soil of great excellence and richness and of 
a consistency to retain moisture for a long time. Nearly all 
the cotton for export is raised witliin this region and finds its 
market at Bombay. 

The Deccan may be divided into Xagpore, Hyderabad, 
Berar and Dharwar districts. 

The soil in the valleys of Nagpore is a rich black loam 
which becomes very sticky and muddy during the rainy season, 
and hard and cracked during the dry season, in this respect 
very much resembling some of the Alabama soils. In the 
hilly portions there is red clay soil. The cotton grown within 
this district is very fine and soft, indicative of a moist and 
equable climate, especially that produced in the valleys of the 
Wurda and its tributaries. Some of it is known commercially 
as Hinghunghat cotton, from the chief town of that section, 
and is considered to possess the highest qualities of any 
Indian cotton. 

Hyderabad is a plateau with a surface more or less hilly, 
and a general elevation of 2,000 feet above the sea level. The 
soil between the hills is remarkably fertile, and along the 



CHAP. I.] 



INDIAN COTTON. 



71 



Kistna, Godavery, and Wiirda rivers and their tiilnitaries is 
to be found some of the most productive soil of India. 

Berar is an elevated valley through which flow several 
large streams that enter into the Godavery, and drain a coun- 
try the .soil of which is unsurpassed in richness, depth, and 
adaptability to the cultivation of cotton. From this section 
comes the cotton known as Oomrawattee, or " Oomras " (Fig. 

Dharwar is another good cotton district, being especially 
suited to the acclimatizing and culture of American cotton. 




Fig. 33. Dhollerah Cotton, Indian. Longi- 
tudinal views to scale j^os inch between 
parallel lines. 

The extent of territory is small, but, being nearer the sea and 
possessing a tolerable uniformity of atmospheric moisture, the 
combination of climate and soil is better adapted for the pro- 
duction of cotton than any other part of the Deccan, and con- 
sec{uently than any other region of India. 

Western India is of no special interest in this connection, 
not being a heavy producer of cotton, except in the provinces 
of Scinde, Cutch, and Guzerat. The soil of these provinces 
varies in richness and productiveness from sand to deep black 
alluvium. The greatest drawback to the cultivation of cotton 



72 COTTON. [ciiAP. I. 

in this region is tlie extreme heat and the drought succeeding 
a rainy season of small precipitation — three to ten inches in 
Scinde and Cutch, though parts of Guzerat have a yearly fall 
of 40 inches. 

Southern India, or the southern part of the Madras Presi- 
dency, is best represented in cotton culture by the provinces 
of Coimbatore and Tinnivelly, which border on the western 
Ghauts, where the atmosphere is humid. The cotton raised 
in the latter province is the best grown in Southern India. 

Although India has always produced large quantities of 
cotton, and made most beautiful and delicate webs from its 
fibre, exporting these flibrics to all parts of the world, it is only 
within the past 100 years that she has exported any consider- 
able quantity of raw cotton. 

The table of short staple cottons gives the dimensions of 
fibres and suitability of Indian cottons for various yarns. 

Several views of Indian fibres, as they appear under the 
microscope, are shown in this chapter. Their study is inter- 
esting as showing the great variation that exists in fibres even 
of the same variety in diameter, thickness of the corded edges, 
and number of convolutions. The transverse sections of 
eleven varieties of Indian cottons, shown in Figs. 35 and 30, 
indicate this variation very clearly. 

Indian cotton has the reputation of being the lowest class 
cultivated. This is largely owing to the great carelessness in 
cultivation. The fields are not properly prepared for cultiva- 
tion, the cotton is not well ginned, and is often adulterated 
with Hindoo freehold estate to a large extent. 

The Broach cotton ( Fig. 31 ), which generally has a 
white and good staple, the Tinnivelly cotton ( Fig. 37 ), which 
is creamy and shorter, and the Dhollerah ( Fig. 33 ), which is 
dirty, but has a good staple, are usually considered to be the 
best of Indian cottons, while Bengal cotton is probably the 
dirtiest cotton on the face of the earth. The variety known as 
Hinghunghat is often mentioned in text books, but seldom 



CHAP. 1.] 



INDIAN COTTON. 



seen on the market, and is usually considered to be the high- 
est prade of Indian cotton. If it is now cultivated to any 
extent it must be retained in Bombay for the use of the local 
mills. 

Previous to about 1888, Indian cotton was a very impor- 
tant article of consumption in England, but its consumption 
has gradually fallen off during the cheapness of American cot- 
ton, and it is now only exported in large quantities to the con- 
tinent of Europe. The reason of this is partially because the 
spinning of lower numbers is carried on to much greater ex- 




Fi»i. o4. Sciade Cottou, Indian. Longimdi- 
nal views to scale io\jo iii<*h between paral- 
lel line.s. 



tent ill Germany and other European continental countries 
than in England. 

The name often applied to Indian cotton is 8urat, the 
name of a small port on the coast of Broach, in the Presidency 
of Bombay, and the name 8urat is usually understood to refer 
only to Bombay Presidency cottons. 

A table is given under the heading of short staple cottons 
containing details of the varieties of Indian cotton, district 
where grown, length and diameter of staple, and suitability 
for various purposes. 



74 



COTTON. 



[chap. 1. 



Other Cottons. The cotton production of China is found 
to be surprisingly large on investigation. Judging from tlie 
rarity with which this cotton is found in the cotton markets of 
the world, one does not expect to find a quantity equivalent 
to 1,300,000 bales of 500 pounds each raised annually and 
almost entirely consumed in tlie country, yet this is the esti- 
mate of the most reliable authorities. It is also estimated 
that 400,000 bales of 500 pounds each are raised in Corea. 
This cotton ( Figs. 39, 40 ) is usually clean, has a short, rough 



\5mm 






G 



O 






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o 



a^ 



Q 









o 



/ ^ , /^ 



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o 



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® 






Fig. oo. Indiaa aud other Asiau Cottons. 
Sections to scale ioV,o iuch between parallel 
lines. 

1. Rangoon. 3. Broach. 5. Tinnivelly. 

2. Assam. 4. Bengal. 6. Dharwar. 



FiG.oCi. Indiwn Cotton. Sections to scale 
tn^jo inch between parallel lines. 

7. Compta. 9. Hinghunghat. 

8. Oomrawattee. 10. Scinde. 

11. DhoUerah. 



staple, but is not used for numbers finer than 12s or 14s till- 
ing when manufactured on power machinery. It is about 
three-fourths of an inch long. 

Another part of Asia where cotton is now largely culti- 
vated and where increasing (|uantities are being raised every 
year is Asiatic Russia and Turkestan. The cotton is grown 
largely from American seed and is shipped overland to Kussiaii 
mills. It is said that about one-third of the supply of cotton 
for the Russian mills is now obtained from the above coun- 
tries, a greater portion of it being conveyed a large section of 



CHAl'. ],] 



OTIIKR COTTONS. 



iO 



its journey ou the backs of camels. The cotton is about one 
inch in lengtli, is of good color and grade, and somewhat 
rough. 

Tlie amount of cotton raised in Japan is comparatively 
unimportant, as that country imports more cotton than she 
grows. Japanese cotton is usually less than three-fourths of 
an incli in length of staple, and somewhat resembles Chinese 
cotton in its cleanliness. 

In the Island of Java a small quantity of a very short, 
dirty cotton is raised, suited for numbers 4s and 6s yarns, of a 




Fig .S7. Tinnivelly Cotton. Longitudinal 
view to scale lo'oo i'^ch between parallel 
lines. 



coarse, rough staple about three-eighths of an inch to five- 
eighths of an inch in length, and one of the shortest cottons 
grown. 

The Phillipine Islands cotton is almost one inch long, 
smooth and of a good color. 

In Australia there is a small (juantity of cotton raised in 
tlie Clarence river district and in Queensland, which is said to 
be of good staple and clean, while in the Fiji Islands in Aus- 
tralasia, and also in the Tahiti Islands, a fairly good grade of 
Sea Island cotton is raised, of a simihir or rather Ijetter grade 



76 



COTTON. 



[chap 



than Florida Sea Island cotton, and the same description 
applies to it to a large extent. A shorter stapled variety is 
grown in Hawaii. 

The European cottons are comparatively unimportant ; a 
small quantity is raised in Spain, some in Italy in the neigh- 
borhood of Naples, some in Greece, and a little in the islands 
of Malta and Sicily. This cotton is usually al)out three- 
fourths of an incli in length of staple. 




Fig. 38. Comparative sectional views of 
different cottons, to scale in'nii inch be- 
tween parallel lines. 

1 Tahiti, Sea Island. 7. Lagos, African. 

2. Brown Egyptian. 8. China. 

3. GulforOrleans(Am.) 9. Red Peruvian. 

4. Rough Peruvian. 10. Shows the ex- 

5. Maceio, Brazilian. treme variations 
0. Sciude, Indian. in the first eight 

samples. 



The Levantine cottons, grown in the neighborhood of 
Smyrna, Asia Minor, and on the island of Cyprus, with which 
may be included Turkish ( Ivoumelian ) and Persian cotton on 
account of their resemblance to the others, are very important 
European cottons. A description of them will be found in the 
tables given later in this chapter. 



CHAP. 1.] 



OTHER COTTONS. 



Smyrna cotton is the most important with regard to 
quantity grown, but the Persian cotton is of the most value, 
resembhng Indian, but being superior to the best Indian 
cotton. 

Some cottons are naturally of a high color, as, for exam- 
ple, red Northern and Coconada Indian cottons, red Guatemala 
cotton, red Peruvian cotton from Peru and Nankin, which has 
been variously stated to be cultivated in China and America, 
but really is only grown in the latter countr3\ 

A well known Liverpool broker says that he has imported 
Nankin cotton from America, and it was so called on account 




Fit;. o'J. China Cottou. Lousitudinal views 
to scale xn\iij incli between parallel lines. 




Fi<;. 40. China Cotton. Sections to scale 
^(j'oi, inch between parallel lines. 



of its resembling the color of Nankin cloth formerly used for 
breeches. The writer has seen Nankin cotton which was said 
to have been grown in Alabama in ISOO. The name being- 
similar to tliat of a Chinese port has led to the assumption 
that it was a China cotton. 

The letter appended proves that Nankin cotton Avas 
formerly grown in the United States : — 

Atl.anta, Ga., Feb. 5, 18U8. 

Dear Sir: — In May, 1895, wlien ananging for our great international 

exposition, I conceived the idea of securing a bale of Nankeen cotton raised 

in time of slavery, bring it here and have it carded, spun, and woven by 

old "Foh de Wah " women in the old-fashioned way on the exposition 



78 COTTON. [chap. i. 

grounds. I wrote to almost every port jjoint in tliis country and Europe 
and finally found a bale at New Orleans that was raised by an old African, 
named Guinea George, alias George Washington, on Frog Level Plantation 
in Alabama, near the Louisiana line. He raised, picked and ginned it in 
1860, and kept the bale at his home all through the years of " Hard Tack 
and Bullet." Sometime after the war he shipped the bale to New Orleans, 
and, as there has been no demand for Nankeen cotton since the war, it has 
remained there until I bought it and brought it here for the above named 
purpose, and have a portion of the bale here now. I heiewith enclose you 
a sample of the cotton. 

Yours truly, 

Hp:nky H. Smith. 

The reproductions of microscopical views of cotton tibres 
in this cliapter ( Fig.s. 15 to 40) are used by the courtesy of 
Mr. Abraham Flatters of Longsight, Manchester, England, 
whose excellent work in micro-photography, especially of 
fil)res, is now receiving deserved, if tardy, recognition. 

Tables of Cotton Characteristics. Four tables are printed 
herewith which have been gradually compiled b}' the author 
during the last fifteen years, largely from personal observation 
and investigation. They give all the known cottons under 
their trade names and state where the cotton is grown, the 
length of staple, the diameter in I0,0()0ths of an inch, the 
characteristics and appearance of the cotton, the numbers of 
yarn into which it is usually spun, and whether these yarns 
are for warp ( twist ), filling ( weft ), or })ly yarns ( doubling ), 
with other information. 

With reference to the yarns named in the tables the 
author would state that they are intended to indicate the num- 
bers usually spun for commercial purposes. For special yarns 
which have to be strong or of a high grade the cotton may be 
used for lower numbers ; or for special or local reasons, may 
be possibly spun into higher numbers, or into warp, filling, 
or ply yarn wliei'e not so specified, ])ut these are unusual 
cases, and are not considered in formulating the tables. 

The cottons are divided into four kinds : Long stai)led, 
medium to long stapled, medium stapled and short stapled. 



CHAP. I.] 



LONG STAPLED COTTON. 



79 



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80 



COTTOX. 



[chap. I. 



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CHAP. I.] 



^rEL)IUM TO LONG STAPLED COTTON. 



81 





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CHAi'. I.] SP:LKrTION AND CLASSIFICATION. 85 

Selection and Classification of Cotton. Tlie selection of cot- 
ton from sain[)k'.s, or the judging of cotton, is a matter of con- 
siderable importance and in order to become thoroughly 
proficient requires a long period of practice to produce the 
trained eve and hand necessary to distinuuish the gradations 
and differences in quality, which add to, or detract from, the 
market value of the fibre. This is not of so much importance 
in the southern markets, where the bales are usually on hand 
to be referred to in case of dispute, but in the northern states, 
and in any country where cotton is largely purchased from sam- 
ples, it is of the utmost importance. This also applies to the 
large European cotton markets, such as Liverpool, Havre, Bre- 
men and Genoa. Although large stocks of cotton are kept in 
these ports, cotton is seldom, or never, purchased from the 
examination of the bale, l)ut from parcels containing small 
pieces of cotton from each bale, technically known as " papers 
of sam[)les." It is customary in well managed mills, on both 
sides of the ocean, to take sam[)les of each new lot of cotton 
that arrives at the mill, sometimes a sample from eveiy bale, 
and at other mills only from a certain number of bales out of 
each hundred. The samples are then compared with the buy- 
ing sam[)les to see if the cotton is e(jual to the quality pur- 
chased. 

In judging cotton from a sample or in selecting cotton 
with a view to purchasing it from sam[)les, the tir.st thing to 
do is to investigate the authenticity of the sample. If it is a 
factor's sample or a merchant's sample it is not usually con- 
sidered to be as reliable as a broker's sample ; in fact, it is 
customary to consider that a seller's sample, especially if it 
be an American sample, is at least a quarter grade bettor than 
the cotton may be expected to turn out. 

The points then to be determined are : First, the grade 
of the sample ; second, the staple ; third, the color ; fourth, the 
amount of sand ; fifth, the amount of dampness ; sixth, whether 
the cotton is even running or not. These points are arranged 



86 COTTOX. [chap. I. 

iu the order of their usual importance. Tliis is not neces- 
sarily accurate in selecting cotton for some purposes ; for 
instance, in cotton to be used for filling yarns, the color is 
more important tlian in cotton for warp yarns. As the warp 
yarn has to be sized, it somewhat spoils a good colored sam- 
ple, or hides the defect of a dull colored cotton. In either 
case, the length of sta})le may be the most important point 
to consider, where it is desired to i)roduce a strong yarn with- 
out regard to its appearance. 

American cotton is usually graded according to a stand- 
ard agreed upon in all the leading cotton markets of the 
world, the highest grade being fair, followed by six other grades, 
the lowest being ordinary. 

The seven full grades of American cotton are : 

Fair. 

Middling fair. 

Good middling. 

Middling. 

Low middling. 

Good ordinary. 

Ordinary. 
This gradation is not sufficiently fine for the cotton mer- 
chant, and consequently each grade is sub-divided into two 
half grades, one of which has the prefix "strict,"' and each 
half grade sub-divided again into (juarter grades, with the pre- 
fixes " fully " and "barely," thus, taking the grade middling, 
we speak of strict middling, fully middling, middling, barely 
middling. The middling is the full grade, the strict middling 
is the half grade, tlie fully and barely middling are the (juar- 
ter grades ; in other words, strict is a half grade higher than 
middling, fully middling is a quarter grade higher than mid- 
dling, barely middling is a quarter grade lower than middling. 
The same is done with each of the other grades ; thus we may 
speak of strict low middling, fully low middling, low middling, 
and barely low middling, low middling being the full grade. 



CHAP. I.] SELKC'TIOX AM) CLASSIFIfATIOX. 87 

A list cau be made up giving twenty-six of these grades, 
half grades, and quarter grades, for American cotton exclu- 
sively, including what is known as low ordinary, the only one 
lower than ordinary. 

These grades represent standard samples tliat are kept at 
the New York Cotton Exchange, du})licates of which are at 
the various markets throughout the United States. The same 
system of grading is maintained in Liverpool and other con- 
tinental cotton markets in name only. As a matter of fact, 
while the same names are used in Liverpool, the Liverpool 
grading for strict low middHng to middling fair inclusive, is 
half a grade lower or more lenient tlian in New York ; thus, 
a middling in New York would be graded a strict middling 
in Liveri)ool, while for grades below strict low middling it is 
quarter to half a grade higher or more strict than in New 
York. 

In case of Brazilian, Egyptian, and other grades of cot- 
ton, other systems of classification are adopted. 

The grades of American cotton usually quoted on the 
Liverpool Cotton Association reports are : Middling fair, fully 
good middUng, good middling, middling, low middling, good 
ordinary, ordinary. 

Of Sea Island cotton : 

Extra fine. 

Fine. 

Medium Fine. 

Good medium. 

Medium. 

Common. 

Ordinary. 
Of Egyptian cottons : 

Extra fine. 

Fine. 

Good. 

Fullv (rood fair. 



88 COTTOX. [chap. I. 

Good fair. 

Fair. 

Middling foir. 

jNIiddling. 
(3f Brazilian cottons : 

Fine. 

Good. 

Good lair. 

Fair. 

Middling fair. 

Middling. 
Of East Indian cottons : 

Superfine. 

Fine. 

Full}^ good. 

Good. 

Fully good fair. 

Good fair. 
The best grades are those at the top of the list in each 
case. 

A specimen weekly report of the Liverpool Cotton Asso- 
ciation is bound in with this book. 

Grade really means the appearance of the cotton as 
regards cleanliness, and the above system of grading depends 
on the appearance of the cotton as to its freedom from leaf 
and other impurities ; some graders consider what is known 
as bloom or brightness of the cotton, which add to, or dis- 
coloration, known as " otf color," or "tinges," which detracts 
from, the grade. This method of valuing the bloom and color 
is more an American custom than a European one. 

After determining the grade, tlie next thing to do in 
judging cotton is to find the staple. The word staple usually 
means average length of the bulk of the fibres forming the 
bale assessed, and it is found by taking a small portion of cot- 
ton in the way hereafter described, preparing a tuft of fibres from 



CHAP. I.] SELECTION AND CLASSIFICATION. 89 

wliich the very short fibre lias been removed, and then measur- 
ing the average length of the fibres remaining. There is some- 
thing more which is usually implied by the word " staple," 
and that is strength of the fibre. This is determined by hold- 
ing the tuft between the finger and thumb of the two hands 
and breaking it. The word " staple " may, therefore, be taken 
to mean the average length of the fibres forming the bale, and 
it is also understood to include the strength of the iibre ; thus 
we have the expressions, "length of staple" and "strength 
of staple." 

After the staple has been determined, it is necessary to 
discover the amount of sand and dirt in the cotton. This is 
often done by raising the cotton from the paper that holds it 
and noticing the amount of sand remaining on the paper, this 
sand having ftillen out by the repeated handling of the cotton. 
It is, perhaps, better to hold the handful of cotton as high as 
one's head and shake it so that the sand, if there is any, can 
be seen to fall from it. 

Another test is that for dampness. This can only be 
detected in the sample paper, if the samples are newly drawn, 
in which case it can be felt by the hand. If the samples 
have been lying around the oftice for some time the dampness 
evaporates and cannot be detected unless it has previously 
been so great as to cause a slight formation of mildew on the 
cotton, in which case it is indicated by the smell. 

The bloom of cotton is the rich bright creamy appearance 
which it has, especially in the early part of the year. This 
bloom is only found on certain growths of cotton and adds 
somewhat to its value, especially where it is to be used for mak- 
ing weft or filling j^arn, or where the goods into which it is to 
be made are to be sold in their unbleached or undyed state, tech- 
nically known in Europe as '' in the grey," and in some parts 
of America as " in brown." " Tinges," " high colored," or " off 
colored," ought to be looked for. These are caused, where the 
cotton has become tinged Avhile on the plant, through rain 



^^0 COTTON'. [tirvp. 1. 

stains, or by liaviiig lalleii on the ground, having become mixed 
with some of the red clay of the cotton field. These bales 
ought to be avoided, and in case of purchasing from a sample 
containing some of these tinged bales, an agreement for a 
reduction in price on the bales ought to be arranged, or a con- 
dition made that these bales will be thrown out before ship- 
ment of the quantity purchased. 

The last point, and one which is important, is to see that 
all bales are somewhat alike. 

Usually a sample paper is made up of a handful of cot- 
ton from each one of the lot of bales ; by testing first one 
sample and then another it is discovered whether the lot of 
cotton is even running ; occasionally, however, if not graded 
properly l:)}^ the cotton fiictor, a lot of cotton is found to be 
mixed.. Some bales may be higher grade than others, some 
may be longer stapled than others, and even in the same bale 
an abnormal variation in length and strength of staple may be 
found. Cotton of this kind ought to be avoided altogether as 
it is almost impossible to make satisfactory yarn out of cotton 
mixed in this manner. 

Gin damaged cotton ought also to be avoided. This is 
referred to in another chapter. 

As has before been stated, constant practice is necessary 
to become a good judge of cotton. Even experienced cotton 
graders and cotton buyers improve year by year in their judg- 
ment of the fibre, until some of them, by a quick glance or 
the slightest touch, can determine at once whether the cotton 
is suitable for their purposes or not. It is not an unusual thing 
for a cotton buyer in a market like Liverpool to become so 
expert as to be able to examine samples in a single morning 
representing tens of thousands of bales. 

Usually the grade is first mentally determined, then a 
small handful of cotton is grasped by both hands, having the 
thumbs uppermost, and pulled apart. One half is thrown 
away, and the ends of the fibres which pnjject from the other 



CHAP. I.] SKLKCTIOX AND CLASSIFICATION. 91 

piece are grasped between the thumb and first finger of the 
right hand, and tlie left hand is employed in removing short 
fibres or fud from the tuft. The tuft of cotton, now much les- 
sened in size, is grasped by holding the other ends of the fibre 
in the left hand, while the right hand removes further short 
fibres or fud. By these few quick movements an experienced 
cotton tester has arrived at a small tuft of fil)res laid ]»ai-allel, 
which can be first measured, usually with the eye only, and 
afterwards grasped firmly between the first finger and thumb 
of each hand, the thumbs being uppermost, and broken by a 
short strong pull. By always taking the same amount of cot- 
ton in the hand at once, and reducing it to the same size of a 
tuft, the cotton man fixes a standard of length and strength 
for himself by which he can assess the value of almost any 
kind of cotton. After the grade and staple have been d-eter- 
mined in the manner just named, a test is made for sand and 
for uneven running ; the appearance as to bloom, color and 
evidences of gin damage are noticed, completing the test of 
the cotton, by which time a cotton expert should have made 
a mental estimate of its value. 

A good deal more can be said on this subject, but we will 
close this description, merely stating that local circumstances 
often affect the judgment on a lot of cotton ; for instance, a 
good north light is the best to judge cotton in, as the light is 
more regular than any other. Cotton should not be purchased 
from a sample wrapped in paper with a blue lining, as this 
causes the cotton to appear better than it really is. 

The same system of judging cotton applies to all growths, 
although some cottons require to be observed more carefully 
for impurities than American cottons. In other cases, such 
as Brazilian, reruvian, China, or Assam cottons, it is necessary 
to observe the roughness of the fibre, as those are often used 
to mix with wool, and the rougher and more wiry, the more 
valuable is the cotton. 



92 COTTON. [chap. I. 

History of Cotton Cultivation. The cultivation of cotton 
liad undoubtedly its home originally in the East Indies; cer- 
tain references are made to cotton in some of the Hindoo reli- 
gious works, written over four thousand years ago, which 
indicate clearly that cotton was known, spun and woven in 
those days. 

The historian who endeavors to trace the history and 
development of such a gigantic industry as the cotton trade, 
becomes, as it were, the explorer of a mighty river. As he 
traces its course, he niay come across a broad expanse which 
gives the impression that it is the main stream, and that if it 
be followed far enough the source will easily be found ; but a 
few miles higher up this stream may divide into almost equal 
parts, and higher still other tributaries may flow in, almost 
indistinguishable by their size from the main stream, until 
nearer the source, the main river is lost in many subsidiary 
supplies. Thus it is, inversely, with the earliest stages of 
the history of the cotton cultivation. The information is 
very scant, and what we can trace is not alvvays reliably based, 
as it is on the insufficiently })roved tales of early travellers, on 
references in profjine literature, clouded by the use of technical 
words and trade names which often materially differ from 
those of our own age. Perhaps the best method of tracing 
the history of the cotton industry is to find where cotton 
was first cultivated for the sake of its fibre, for we may depend 
upon it, that the country where it was first grown would also 
be the first to manufacture it. Each nation was isolated from 
the other, and scarcely able to connnunicate with, much less 
to transport the raw material from, one countr}^ to be manu- 
factured in another, returning the manufactured goods. 

Taking this line of argument we ma}'' dispose of any sup- 
position of the cotton manufacture ( and consequently the 
cultivation of the plant for its fibre ) having had an American 
or even European origin. Cotton fibres and cotton ftibrics 
were known in Europe long before the date of Columbus' 



CHAl'. I.] HISTORY OK COTTON CULTIVATION. 93 

voyage of discovery, and it is not recorded that the cotton 
phmt was found in North America by any of the early ex- 
plorers. 

Cotton was certainly grown centuries ago in Spain and 
Italy, but there are records that its cultivation was only intro- 
duced into the former country from the East Ijy Abdurrahmah 
the Great so recently as the tenth century. In Africa, the 
only country which can have a shadow of a claim to the par- 
entage of tlie cotton industry is Egypt, and here, we find that 
although Pliny, the historian, relates that the cotton plant was 
known there in the time of Christ, yet his evidence is unsup- 
ported, and classical scholars consider that he was referring to 
another })lant. It is quite certain that it did not become an 
im})ortant object of cultivation in Egypt till the introduction 
of cotton growing by Mahomet Ali Pasha, in 1821, resulting 
in the first exports to England in 1823. We also find that 
during the first and second centuries of the Christian era, 
large quantities of Indian cottons were imported into Egypt, 
and a further proof of the fact that the manufactures of 
ancient Egypt were linen, and not cotton, is found in the 
result of the long scientific discussions which took place many 
years ago, as to the material of which mummy wrappings were 
composed. It was finally decided that they were linen and 
not cotton, after the peculiar form of the cotton fibre had been 
discovered by the aid of the microscope. In China, we find that 
although cotton is now grown there to an enormous extent, it 
was only introduced into that country about 600 years ago, and 
at first it was only cultivated for the sake of its beautiful 
flowers. In the year 502 A.D. it is recorded of one of the 
Chinese Emperors that he had a robe of cotton. This must 
have been a remarkable possession for the record to have been 
handed down as a wonder to the present time. The cultiva- 
tion and manufacture of cotton was so little known in China 
in 1295, when the country was visited by Marco Polo, a cele- 
brated traveller of Venice, that he does not even mention it. 



94 COTTON. [chap. I. 

altlioiigli he minutely describes the inhabitants and tlieir 
habits, stating^ in one place that they were clothed solely in 
silk. 

We may also omit the continent of Australia, for, as it 
was only discovered in 1699, it evidently cannot have origi- 
nated cotton growing and manufacture. Having exhausted 
the list of countries where cotton is or has been a recognized 
product, with one exception, that of India, we may come to 
the conclusion that there is the country of origin, where cot- 
ton was grown, spun, and woven at least two thousand years 
ago. 

There can be no doubt of India being the early country 
of cotton, China that of silk, and Egypt that of flax. 

The early seat of the cotton trade in India is borne out 
by all or almost all the evidence that we can adduce. It is a 
matter of regret that the period covered by reliable history of 
India and the Hindoos is limited, and as compared with that 
of other nations we arrive much sooner at a period of ftible 
and legend. It is chiefly b}' the religious books of the Hin- 
doos that we can trace out their customs and habits. In one 
of these books, the Rig Veda, supposed to have been written 
fifteen centuries before the time of Christ, or three thousand 
four hundred years ago, we find a reference to threads in the 
loom, and there is in this book also a reference to sizing. 
Also 800 years before, or 2700 years ago, in another of their 
sacred books, cotton is very frequently mentioned under its 
name of Kurpas, or Kupas, which name is still in general 
use in India. The fabrication of cotton goods must have 
attained a high perfection in India several centuries before the 
Clu'istian era, for it is stated by the ancient Greek historian 
Herodatus, who was born 484 years before Christ, regarding 
the Hindoos, that : 

" They possess likewise a kind of plant wdiicli, instead of 
fruit, |)roduces wool of a finer and better quality than that of 
a sheep, and of this the Indians make their clothes." 



CHAP, i] lUSTOKY OF COTTON CULTIVATION. 95 

This historian, a most relial)le one according to modern 
opinion, does not mention cotton as being used by any of the 
then known nations — Greeks, Komans, Egyptians, Assyrians, 
Jews. We may conckide that its manufacture w^as at tliat 
time confined to Eastern countries, perhaps India only. 

A further and greater proof of the early origin of a well- 
developed cotton industry in India is the history of the voyage 
of Xearchus, one of the admirals of Alexander the Great, re- 
corded by two different historians, Strabo and Arrian ; this 
mighty conqueror, shortly before his death, despatched one 
of his admirals on a voyage of discovery on the river Indus, 
and on that ocean now known as the Indian Ocean, about 
327 B. C. 

The history of this voyage is carefully related, and a part 
of it reads thus : 

" The Indians wore linen garments, the substance whereof 
they were made growing upon trees, and this is indeed flax, 
or something much wdiiter and finer than flax. They wear 
shirts of the same, which reach down to the middle of their 
legs, and veils which cover their heads and a great part of 
their shoulders." 

It was no doubt owing to the voyages organized by Alex- 
ander the Great that the fabrics of India first became known 
as articles of clothing in Europe, Asia-Minor, and Egypt. In 
the year lol A. I)., Arrian, the historian, relates that Indian 
cottons, muslins, plain and figured, and raw cotton for stuffing 
couclies and beds, were landed in Egypt from India. Cotton 
is not mentioned in the Bible, except in one single instance, 
and in that case it is only named in the Hebrew, and is not 
referred to in either of the English translations by the name 
of cotton. We have often references in the Bible to wool and 
linen, to spinning, weaving and dyeing, to looms and to shut- 
tles, but the only reference to cotton is in the Book of Esther, 
where the palace of Shushan is described as possessing white, 
green and blue hangings. The word hangings in Hebrew is 



96 



COTTON. 



[chap. I. 



Karpas, or in Greek, Karpasos, and the similarity between 
this word and the word named above, as the name used for 
cotton from time immemorial in India, viz. Kurpas, is at once 
seen. 

Thus the passage in Esther should describe the decora- 
tions as " white and violet colored cottons." This is a subject 
of a marginal note in the revised version. Here is another 



C^^^* 


P 


s 


\Utii ^ 


'^1 


M 


^ 




yl 




_J--= 


* «^^ ^m^ »i^ < 


'"VI 


tL 


'^-n^;^- 



Fig. 41. Thie Vegetable Larqb. 
After Sir John Mandeville. 



proof of the fact of Indian cloth being exported at so early a 
date, namely, 521 B. (!'. 

Persia being nearer India would have cotton fabrics 
earlier than Egypt, and the Indian name being applied to 
the cloth, stamps the country of origin. 

In Europe, about the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries, 
cotton was so little known that there were several superstitions 
believed regarding it. One was that its seed was useful as a 
cure "for asthma, coughs, dysentery, and wounds," and was 



CIIAI'. I.] 



HISTORY OF COTTON CULTIVATION. 



97 



a good remedy in case of poisoning, while the oil of the cot- 
ton seed was recommended to take away spots or freckles, in 
fact, it was a cure-all, and reminds us of a patent medicine 
circular of modern times. 

Another curious superstition regarding it was as to its 
mode of growth : this was nothing more or less than that the 
cotton wool was really the wool of lambs that grew and lived 




Fig. 42. Portrait of xl\e " Barorqetz," or " Scyth|iari Lan^b. 



attached to Ijranches of trees. Of course the only knowledge 
of tibrous substance possessed by our forefathers in those days 
was that of ordinary wool or of flax, and no doubt their first 
impression of an}'' other fibre would be something that re- 
sembled the wool of the shee}) or the hair of the goat. This 
belief was fostered or more })robably established by one Sir 
John Mandeville, described as a man of learning and sub- 
stance, of the town of St. Albans, in Herefordshire, who in the 
year 1322 left his native city, became a globe trotter, and did 



•'8 COTTOX. [chap. I. 

not return for tliirty-tbur years. In his report of his journciv he 
states that he travelled through all tiio then known kingdoms 
of the world, and among other things diseovered this vegeta- 
ble lamb. His account in his own words is : " Now shall I 
say you of countryes and isles that be beyond the countr3'e 
that I have spoken of. Passing beyond Cathay and India and 
Bachary is a kingdom tliat men call Caldeya, that is a fair 
countrye and there growetli a maimer of fruit as though it 
were gourds, and when they be ripe men cut tliem in two and 
men find within a little beaste in Hesh and in bone and in 
blood as though it were a little lamb with wool outside it. 
Men eat both the fruit and the beaste and that is a great mar- 
vel. Of that fruit I have eaten, although it were wonderful, 
but I know that God is marvelous in all his works." Sir 
John's drawing is reproduced at Fig. 41. Another account 
is by Baron Xon Herberstein, an ambassador to the Court of 
Maximilian. His account is tluit the seed when put in the 
earth grew a ])lant resembling a lamb, and attaining to the 
height of 2^ feet. It had a head, eyes, ears and all other 
parts of a body as a newly born lamb. It had an exceedingly 
soft wool, which was used in the manufacture of head cover- 
ings. It was rooted b}^ a stem in the middle of the body and 
devoured the surrounding herbage and grass, and lived as 
long as tliat lasted ; when there was no more within its reach, 
it died. A representation of this animal is shown at Fig. 42. 

Fables of the kind that I have related appear in many 
of the traveller's tales of the Middle Ages, and there is no 
doubt that this ridiculous tale achieved much popularity. 

History of Cotton Cultivation in the United States. \\'itli 
reference to the introduction of cotton growing in the L nited 
States, it was not until the year 1021 that it was cultivated 
for the sake of the fibre in this country. In the southern 
half of the continent, Magellan, while circumnavigating the 
globe in 1519, found the Brazilians using cotton in making 
their materials for their beds ; cotton fabrics were sent from 








n^^: ^_ '. -s. v;:^ v?'- ^ 









i&j 






i' 







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««'v 




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/>•'-. ^i-;.''. .•^■;v-!aKEjLs^-/-tf^''^--^ 



]0() COTTON. [cir.M'. i. 

]\Iexico to Spain in the same year as presents to Em})eror 
Charles Y. 

The year 1021 is regarded as the birth year of cotton cul- 
ture in the United States. It had previously been found 
growing;- in a wild state, however, in various portions of the 
South, more particularly in the country bordering upon the 
]Mississip{)i ( Meschachebe ) and its mau}^ tributaries. 

A volume entitled " Purchas's Pilgrims" thus records the 
fact: "Cotton seeds were first jdanted as an experiment in 
1621, and their plentiful coming up was, at that early day, a 
subject of interest in America and England." 

A tract called " A Declaration of the State of ^"irginia," 
})ulilished in London in 1020, mentions cotton wool as one of 
the commodities of the " collony." A list of articles "to be 
had in the ^^irginia collony," in 1021, mentions "cotton wool 
<Sd. per })Ound " as among the luimber. The cotton tluis 
introduced was probably from the seed from the West Indies 
or the Levant, and its cultivation was for a long time limited 
to such qualities only as were needed for domestic use, as the 
cost of hand cleaning or separation of the seed by hand 
exceeded the commercial value of all cotton so cleaned. 

Some colonists from Barbadoes who settled on the (_'a})e 
Fear Piver, in 1004, brought with them cotton seed, which 
they cultivated for domestic purposes. 

In the description of the Province of Carolina, by Samuel 
Wilson, addressed to the Earl of Craven, in 1082, it is stated 
the " cotton of the Smyrna and Cypress sort grows well and 
good, plenty of the seed is sent hither." 

In "Pivers' Historical Sketches of South Carolina" are 
found the following passages in the instructions given l)y the 
})roj)rietors to Mr. West, the first governor of South Carolina : 

" ' Mr. West, God sending you to Barbadoes, you are then 
to furnish yourself with cotton seed, indigo seed, ginger roots. 
Your cotton and indigo is to be planted where it may be shel- 
tered from ye north-west winde, for they are both a[)t to Ijlast.' 



102 COTTON. [ciiAi'. I. 

' West was also instructed to receive the products of the 
country in payment of rents at the following valuations : 
Ginger, scaled, at 2d. per i)Ound ; scraped ginger at 3d. per 
])ound ; indigo at 3s. per i)Ound ; silke at 10s. })er pound ; 
cotton at okl. per pound.' " 

About tliat time great efforts were being made to estab- 
lish indigo culture in the Carolinas. Indigo was also intro- 
duced into Louisiana by the French in 171<S, and Avithin ten 
years became an object of export. 

Aljout 1740, when rice became reduced in price, the seed 
of the East India indigo plant, which had been for many 
years extensively cultivated in the West Indies, was sent, 
with cotton, ginger, lucerne, etc., from Antigua by Mr. 
Lucas, the governor of the island. Previous to the war of 
the Revolution, indigo held the position among the products 
of South Carolina afterwards occupied by cotton. It was 
hardly less important in Georgia. 

Miss Lucas, the daughter of the Governor of Antigua, 
and the mother of General Charles Cotesworth Pinckney, was, 
at the age of eighteen, in charge of a plantation in South 
Carolina. In her journal, 1739 and 1741, she speaks of the 
pains she had taken to bring cotton and indigo to perfec- 
tion. The first export of cotton was from Savannah. An 
exportation of seven l)ags, valued at £o lis. od. per bag was 
made from Charleston, between November, 1747, and Novem- 
ber, 1748. 

American Cotton Ctiltivation in 1832. It may be inter- 
esting here to re[)rint a review of the state of cotton cultivation 
in the United States, written in 1832 by James Montgomery, 
who came from (Glasgow, Scotland, to take charge of some 
cotton mills. At that time the American cotton crop was 
about 1,000,000 bales of 500 pounds, instead of nearly 
10,000,000 bales as at present. 

"Previous to the year 1700, North America did not sup- 
pl}' England with a single pound weiglit of cotton ; it was 



101 



COTTON. 



(Hil\- Ml'tcr (lie l(Tiiiiii;i(i()ii ol' llic Aiiiciiciin War tli;i(coU.(»ii 
l)('i2,aii lo lu' rulli\at('(l in ('ai'oliiia and ( icori^ia, and it- lias 
siR'foedi'd so well that it I'orins one ol' tlic staj)U! pi'oductioiis 
of tlu> UnitiMl States. lUit that wliich was lirst sent into tlic 
l'aii;hsh niai'kct- was vitv inipciTcct ly cdcancd, and, in consc- 
(|iionci', was lor some timt' nscd oidy I'oi' spinnini;- low num- 
bers. It was soon |)(M'c('i\'('d, howcvei', that tlic cotton |.i,rown 
ujion the coast, termed Sea Island cottcrii, had a longer and 
liner staple than that which was produced farther up the 
countrw and known hy the name ot" I'pland cotton. lUit 
some years idapsed helbre it was ascertained to he ol" a 
(piality in every respect superior to that which was lu'ouglit 
from the Isle of r)OUrhon, the only cotton then used for tlu^ 
tiiiest (pialities of yarns, hut which is now almost- su|)ersede(l 
by the Ibmier. 

American cotion is generally distinguished by the names 
of Sea Island, I'pland, New < )rleaiis, AlaF)auia, Tennessee, etc. 

Sea Island cotton is the linest that is imported into this 
country, or, indeed, that- is known, and takes its name from 
being grown upon small sandy islands contiguous to the 
shores of (leorgia and ('arolina, aiul on the low grounds bor- 
dering on the sea. The principal islands art' situated l)etween 
Charleston and Savaiuiah. It- is a line silky cotton, having a. 
yellowish tinge, both long and strong in the staple, and used 
only foi- spinning the linest (|ualities of yarn, oi' tor a supei'ior 
(piality of power loom wai'ps. IJut its (pialities ditler so much, 
that the linest specimens are often more than double the price 
of the int'ei'ior sorts. Its close vicinity to the sea exi)osi^s it to 
the inclemencies of the weather, by which it is often injured, 
eonse(piently that which is thus damaged sells at a nnich 
lowei- price than the better kinds. 

rpliiixl cotton is a diirer(Mit spcn-ies tVom Sea Island, and 
is gi-own in N'irginia, North and South ('arolina. and (Jeoi'gia ; 
and for a considerable time the cultivation was coidined to 
these states. 



C1IAI-. I.] AMERICAN COTTON ( T]/!! V ATlON. 105 

As the planting extended to the south, tlie (jiiality varied 
in some resj)ects, and the cotton received the name of its place 
of growth ; hence, New Orleans cotton, Alnhama, Ah)bile. 

Thiii which is known in the market by the name of New 
Orleans, is a very superior cotton, clean, soft, and of a glossy 
and silky appearance, rather short in staple, and incorporates 
freely with other cottons of a longer staple. It is grown upon 
the banks of the Mississi})|)i, and sent in great ([uantities into 
the English market, where it ranks in price and quality about 
equal to the common qualities of Ih-azil cottons. Alabama 
and I'pland rank next to New^ Orleans, and are soft, short, 
and weak in staple. 

The cultivation of cotton wool is carried to a verv areat 
extent in the United States at present. The quantity exported 
from this country is estimated at about o5(),000,000 ft)S. yearly,, 
and apparently still increasing. The quantity consumed by 
the American manufacturers is now about 90,000,000 Bbs* 
The total quantity grown in the United States is estimated to 
be nearly 500,000,000 fts. yearly, the value of which must be 
about £9,000,000. This article alone furnishes one-half of 
the whole exports of the United States." 

As has been before stated the above was written in 1S;32. 



106 COTTON. [chap. II. 



CHAPTER II. 

THE AMERICAN COTTON BELT. PEOPLE OF THE COTTON P.ELT. 

LAND TENURE IN THE COTTON P,ELT. AREA OF AVAILABLE 

COTTON LAND IN THE UNITED STATES. 

The American Cotton Belt. In the southeast corner of 
the continent of North America lies that section of the coun- 
try known as the South — "The Sunny South" — as it is 
affectionately called by its inhabitants, and by the Northerners 
who make it a winter resort. 

The South, so-called, is all situated within the boundaries 
of the United States, but does not include the whole of the 
geographical southern states, excluding New Mexico, Arizona, 
and Southern ( 'alifornia, which, although as near the equator 
as South Carolina and Georgia, are not included in the terri- 
tory called the "South." 

It is in this country that the fibre known to commerce as 
American and Sea Island cotton is grown, and it is from this 
section that the world has principally drawn its supply of raw 
cotton for two generations. 

The cotton growing states bordering on the Atlantic are : 

A^irginia, North and South Carolina, Georgia and Florida ; 
on the Gulf of Mexico, Louisiana, Mississippi and Alabama, 
with the inland states of Arkansas and Tennessee, the latter 
being connected with the ocean by means of the great Mis- 
sissippi River, — " The Father of Waters," — flowing into the 
Gulf of Mexico. Kentucky, though i)art of the South, is 
omitted in the above list, as the production of cotton is so 
small as to very slightly affect the total, and the same remarks 
as to production apply to California, Indian Territory and 
Arizona. 



CHAP. II.] TlIK A>rKKI('AX COTTON P.ELT. 107 

* ' The tract of country sj)ecitied as above, and shown on 
the map, Fig. 46, may be called the cotton producing sec- 
tion of the South, and is approximately 1300 miles from the 
most easterly to the most westerly point, and 500 miles from 
the north to the south, being in the form of an irregular 
rhoml)oid. The northern portion of the Cotton States is 
divided by a range of mountains, the southern termination of 
which is called the Alleghanies, the Blue Ridge and the Cum- 
berland mountains, and comprises the highest peaks in the 
United States east of the Rockies. These mountains jut into 
the cotton belt as above defined, and lie almost midway be- 
tween the eastern and western boundaries of it. From the 
mountains in all directions slopes an undulating country of 
gradually lessening elevation, descending on the east to the 
Atlantic Ocean, on the west to the Mississippi, and on the 
south to the Gulf of Mexico, all of which Abaters are at a dis- 
tance of about 350 miles from the mountains. It is these ele- 
vated undulating plains that on the eastern side especially 
have acquired the name of Uplands, and given that name to 
a much used class of cotton. East and w^est of the JNIississippi 
lies a flat tract of country, including the states of Louisiana, 
A rkansas and Mississippi, intersected by numerous bayous and 
watered by many streams flowing into the Mississippi River. ■ 

The mountain region contains many beautiful vistas, such 
as were described as " long drawn beautiful valleys and glori- 
ous highlands " by Lord Coruwallis, after marching through 
this country on the last occasion of a British army being found 
south of the Great Lakes ; but away from the "mountainous 
region, it is country that cannot be classed as i)icturesque, as 
the groves of pines or fir trees covering knolls of red soil in- 
tersected by gullies become extremely monotonous to the trav- 
eller, especially in the winter season. Even when the monot- 
ony is relieved by a river it is a liquified repetition of the land 
view — a muddy red stream fringed by the same unfailing- 
pines and flowing between banks of red clay. In the spring 



lOS COTTON. [chap. II. 

find .summer, the luxurious vegetation in most sections gives 
a charm to many of the views, decorating them with beautiful 
green and an ocean of flowers, which remain until scorched by 
the intense heat of the summer sun, when the vegetation 
fades, the ground is dried up and ])arched, and, by fall, only 
the forests of pine and firs relieve the monotony of the red 
soil until another spring returns. 

AVith the exception of a few hot summer spells, wlien 
clothing is from a utilitarian view unnecessary, when at night 
even a sheet or coverlet is an encuml)rance, and when sleep 
will not be tempted until morning on account of heat, or be- 
cause of the mosquitoes, the climate is exquisite. 

The winter season is not cold as a rule ; when snow falls 
it is only to a depth of an inch or two, and it readily clears 
away, while the morning sun easily breaks up any frost that 
shows itself during the night. 

The air at mid-day at Christmas time is as balmy as a 
New England May-day. Spring is early and summer long, 
and it is this fact that admits of cotton raising. 

Cotton is a plant that requires an early start and long 
season to bring its fruit to maturity. In the South, it is not 
unusual to have hot weather begin in ^Vpril and May, lasting 
almost without intermission until September. June and July 
are usually extremely hot, and those who are able take refuge 
in the mountains of Georgia, North and South Carolina. 

Cotton flourishes best when the nights are warm as well 
as the day, but this advantageous feature, from a cotton rais- 
ing point of view, is of distinct disadvantage to the human 
race. Some of the effects of the weather on the cotton crops 
are treated of later. 

The fall, winter and early spring are delightfully pleas- 
ant, with balmy warm days and evenings, and a touch of 
chilliness in the morning air. 

The cotton plant is grown throughout all this region. 
In some districts it is the staple article of cultivation, while in 



CHAP. II.] PKori.K <)l' Till-: COTTON 15ELT. 109 

others it is cultivated as a surplus crop, or in specially favored 
plats. We find it in the stiff calcareous and otherwise pro- 
fusely fertile buckshot soil of the great valleys and uplands, as 
well as on the brown loam bluff and timbered table lands, in 
the stiff red clay lands of the uj^lands, and even to some extent 
on the sandy soils of the coast region. 

The country is sparsely populated. The population of 
North and South Carolina, Alrginia, Georgia, Florida, INlissis- 
sippi, Louisiana, Alabama, Texas, Arkansas and Tennessee 
was only 14,050,29") in IcSlM), or 24 people to the S(|uare mile. 
Compare this with 278 to the square mile in Ahissachusetts, 
or 540 to the square mile in England. 

In North Carolina the whole population is only that of 
Philadelphia, of Berlin ( Germany ), or of ^Manchester and Liv- 
erpool ( England), while the area of the state is 48,580 square 
miles, or larger than England, and considerably larger than 
New England, excluding Maine, yet it has only three cities of 
20,000 inhabitants. 

The states bordering on the Gulf of Mexico and the Mis- 
sissippi river possess fine cities, but the description that applies 
to one southern state is largely applicable to another, and the 
figures regarding North Carolina, given above, indicate what 
possibilities of expansion and progress yet exist in the whole 
of this practically undeveloped territory. 

People of the Cotton Belt. The population is largely 
composed of native born Americans, there being perhaps a 
smaller proportion of foreigners in the South than in any 
other section of the Ignited States. Many of the whites are 
descendants from the original settlers who won the country 
from their Indian predecessors in the days when deer and 
bufialo swarmed over the cotton fields of today. These i)eo})le 
have inherited or evolved qualities that are characteristic of 
SQuthern as compared with northern people in all countries, 
whether in the old world or the new. 

Men more genial, women more bcautil'ul. and ])otli more 



110 COTTON. [ciiAr. ii. 

sentiiiKMital, geiUTOus and hospital)le, as a rule, tlian })eople of 
more iiortheni latitudes, who are more rugged in speech, 
sterner in manner and more industrious and enter})rising. 

At the present time there is a continual influx of northern 
and foreign settlers, but they are not sufficiently numerous to 
visibly affect the characteristics of the southern peo})le, 
although in many instances pecuharities of the original race, 
from which residents of certain districts are descended, can be 
traced, as for instance, wdiere the country or a section of the 
state was originally settled by Swiss, by Scotch Presbyterians, 
by Ulster Irish, or French Huguenots. 

The better class of white people are largely descendants 
of merchants or planters, who before the war, cultivated large 
areas of land under cotton, sugar and tobacco, by slave labor. 
These people, impoverished by the war, are only now begin- 
ning to recover from its effects, but many of them are building 
up businesses as merchants ( which in the South includes 
every variety of store-keeper), as flouring millers, cotton 
dealers, owners of saw mills, and even cotton, w^oolen and 
hosiery mills. 

There is a very large sprinkling of a very poor class of 
whites, particularly around the l>lue Ridge mountain region, 
who are s})oken of in Georgia as " crackers," whose existence 
as available cheap labor affords a possibility for a great increase 
in the manufacturing industries which would not otherwise be 
possible. These people when on the mountain farms are 
dreadfully poor, are in almost all cases so ignorant that the}^ 
cannot even read or write, and carry, especially tlie women, a 
gaunt, anxious, haggard appearance, wdiich indicates an 
unceasing struggle for a bare existence. Their habits are 
primitive, and such old world industries as hand spinning and 
weaving are still known among them. At the mills they are 
much more pros})erous and their condition rapidly improves. 
A group of North Carolina cotton mill hel}) is shown at 
Fig. 47. 



CHAP. II.] 



I'EOPLE OF Tin-: COTTOX ];klt, 



111 




112 COTTON. [chap. II. 

Hitherto, these people have cultivated small Iknns on the 
share system on the upland slopes of the mountains, and are 
now u'lad of the opi)ortunity that is being afforded them of 
findino- work in the cotton mills that are springing u}) all over 
the South, and which it would not be possible to run without 
drawing on a class of labor such as this. 

There are three states — Mississippi, Louisiana, and South 
Carolina — where the colored people out-number the white. 
While a large proportion of the population in every southern 
state consists of the colored descendants of the slaves, only a 
small percentage of the colored people consists of the real 
" slave negro." The hard working, civil, virtuous, well 
trained "uncle" and "auntie" of " befo' tlie wah " times is 
fast disappearing, and is almost as scarce as a " Crimean \et- 
eran," and their place is being taken by an undesirable class 
of lighter colored, lazier, and more thriftless colored people. 

Formerly the African had to work from compulsion, but 
now hunger is often the only incentive to labor. The charac- 
ter of the present day negro is seen in the ill-cultivated farms, 
the crowds of loafers at the street corners and store doors, or 
the heavy percentage of " colored " on the chain gang, as 
shown in several views throughout this book. 

Even the negro belonging to this class considers himself 
or herself superior to the " cracker" or " white trash " type of 
white men previously named, as abundant instances show. 

The future relation of the colored to the white race is one 
of the sternest problems that the southern legislators will have 
to deal with. 

The bulk of the cotton that is raised is produced l)y these 
two classes of people, the negroes or the poor whites, working 
for the better class planters, or working for themselves on the 
share system previously named. 

Another resident in the South, who ought not to be for- 
gotton, for on the farm he is always to be found with the 
negro, is the mule. The colored farmer alwaj's })refers a mule 



C. I". HKOOKS. 




Fig. 40- Map of the United Stales of Hrrierica 



'I 



1 14 COTTON. [C1IA1>. II. 

to a horse, and it is a standing joke in the Sontli liow well 
these two work together. The wagons in the n})land countries 
are almost always drawn Ijy nuiles, or "mountain canaries," 
a name which anyone who has ever heard them sing will 
thoroughly understand. As the southern mule is singing 
bass, tenor, alto and treble in one long-drawn note, its owner 
is apt to caution you to " keep away from de business end of 
dat ar mule." 

An odd combination of the new and the old is shown in 
Fig. 49, where are seen an ox and two mules drawing the 
latest production of the weaving mechanics art — a magazine 
or Northrop loom — over the rough country roads of South 
Carolina, for which view I am indebted to the Draper Com- 
pany, Hopedale, Mass. 

Land Tenure in the Cotton Belt. The cotton crop is 
now raised principally by small farmers. Before the war 
the plantations were large, and the position of a cotton planter 
with broad acres and numbers of slaves was an important 
one. At the time of the war all the planter's wealth was in 
slaves and land, and when freedom came, he, in many cases, 
lost both. The loss of capital represented Ijy the slaves, 
which, on an average, were worth a thousand dollars each, 
was enormous, and the immediate etfect of this was a great 
depreciation in the value of land, for there was not labor 
enough in the country to cultivate it. The negro, always 
fond of idleness, has never worked since the war as he did 
before it, and, apart from the planter's own family, the whole 
population was small, consisting chiefly of small farmers who 
had their own lots to cultivate, and the white men who had 
been employed on large plantations as millers or mechanics. 

Land previously worth |20 to $30 per acre fell to f-i or 
$o, and some of it lay fallow for many years. $5 = £1. 

Out of these circumstances has been evolved the renting 
of small farms, sections of former plantations, to both white 
and colored farmers, on what is known as the share system. 



CHAI'. 11 ] 



LAM) TKNTRK IX THE COTTON T5ELT. 



115 






o 



f 




I hi ('(('I'lnN. 



<IIAI'. II. 



'rintH(* of tilt' loniM'i' |il;niti'i'- or llicir (Ic-cciKhuils who IkkI 
n'taillfd |)(iHS("~-i(iii (il llii' {ihiiihilliili, ;illii(p-l ;il\\;i\'^ <lr|'i\i' 
lliiii' ii'iil Iriiiii Ihis sysiclM, l fl;i lii i li;j ;i -crlidii nl Liml l<i ciil 
li\'iil.(^ |.Ih^iii.scI\ cs, nr niiiiiiiiL' ^luivs, [;iiiiiiii,L' ;iii<l lli nir mi 1 1-, 

Cddnll lU'cSSCS, MImI III!' \\\:f, and il is lllis chi-^ (.r |>('ii|i|<' lli.it 

i,s iHiw liir;j,i'|\ iiii|ili;j, in llir in'W iiin\'ciiiciil i<[' •■<'nll(iii Mills 
In III!' ( 'nlliiii." 

'riic sliiii'e syslcni ih iinilniili|<i||y a ^I'cal l>niiliii Id llic 
cniinlry, a ta\' nii tlir cnllivalui and a s(MM(tiis aildiluai hi llic 

|irif(' of cnllcHl ^'l•| il has liccli a lUlCOHHliry evil, I'dl (III III) 

iillicr s\s|ciii niiild ^iifli cniiiiinitis cnips lia\'c liccn laiscil 
diinti^, Ilii' last lliiity years in a (•(uinliy iin |ni\'ci'islicd liy \\ a r 
and li\ (Jic loss nl' alinnsl all ils caiHlal 

'riif s\s|fiii \arifs in diMcicnt -rclions of llic cdunlrN , lad, 
it is usually on llic lia-^is nf Ihc land (i\\ iicr lakin;j, liis r<'nt 
in a iioi'timi cf llic cinii The |ii(i|i(itl khi \aries in Narioiis 
disi riels, accnrdine Id whclhci' Ihc ci'dii is iiid>4ly coiii dr 
cotton, wliellier Ihc land dwner |>i-d\ides fell i li/cis, nniles. 
|tlon;4hs, dT iidl, and aeedi-diiij^ Id Ihc Idcalidii dl Ihc land. 
The a\('l'ajjc in a ni.iiilici- dl' Ihe slates is ihal ahdiil diic Idiitih 
or diiclhiid dt ihe eid|i is c(|ni\alenl to Ihc rent df Ihc 
land, thai aiidlhci diiclhii'd of Ihc (a'd|i is e(|ni\alenl lo 
Ihe sll|i|ily dl' t'cl't lll/efs, ha I'll W a I'c, liinles, i in | ilciiielils. \'rrt\ 
I'dl' Ihe .sldck, and lilaeksniil ITs woik, lca\ in^ t'ldiii diic lliird In 
li\'c I w elniis as hciiic a Jaif e(|ii i \a Ictil Idf ihe lahdi' <\\' rais- 
ing Ihe el'dp. I''|-diii lliese | la I'l icii la I's Ihe I'dl ld\\ i iili,' inslanees 
can he i,'i\eii : 

In dlle case (he ne<j,rd ill' |idd|- whih' |iays dlierdll|-|h dl" 
Ihc e|-d|i I'dl' (he use d|' the laiiil and delVa\s all c\|ic!ises liilii- 
sclt; in andther ease the land owiici- alldws the use of the 
land, and |ia\s the hills I'lU- fcitili/cis, hlaeksniil lis, keep nf 
innlcs, and sd dii, and lakes dnchall the (idp; in annlhcr 
vnsv. (he land owner |ird\idcs c\crytliin^ lail the lalmr and 
takl'S (Wd-lliird- i>\' I he eidji 

The iiia\niiiiiii eidp ihat is c(.nei-ally raised i> u--ually 



i.ANi) tk.\i;i:k in tiik cotton kklt. 



1 1 




§4s4i|^'%- 




118 COTTON. [cil.M'. II. 

considered to be o<>(l |>()iiiids ol' lint, or one Itale to the acre. 
From tliis the crop diininisli(!s to a very small amount, the 
average over the wliole cotton Itelt being less than Lfod pounds, 
or half a bale to the acre. 

As an instance of the ])roducts per aci'e which it is rea- 
sonable to expect under ihe best cultivation in this section, 
the prennum list of a county fair hehl in eastern Xoi'th (aro- 
hna contains the following limitations : 

" For largest yield of lint cotton upon one acre, not less 
than oOO j)ounds." 

•• For largest yield of corn, not less that fifty bushels." 

" For largest yield of rye, not less than thirty bushels." 

"For largest yield of sweet potatoes, not less than 2;j0 
bushels." 

A bushel of corn (maize) weiglis fifty-six pounds; of 
rye, fifty-six pounds ; of sweet potatoes, sixty pounds ; and of 
cotton seed, thirty ])Ounds. 

The rents for cotton forms when paid in cash seem some- 
what excessive, for example: — land valued at $5 to $(j an 
acre is rented frequently for .$2.00 ; that valued at |4 is rented 
for |2 ; and in anothei- case, that valued at |1() is rented for 
$4. Of course it must be borne in mind that the whole of 
the fai-m is not figured in estimating the rental, as some of it 
is not fit for cultivation, and also tliat the landlord is not 
always able to collect his rent, but even considering these 
points, the cash rental appears excessive in ])i-oportion to the 
valuation. 

The name "jdanter" is largely dying out and in its place 
the word "farmer" is used. A planter was at one time a 
kind of feudal lord, with broad acres, a fine mansion and 
slaves. Now the fai-mers often live in a cabin on a jtatch of 
a few acres. Most of the cotton that is now growm is raised 
on small farms, which can ])e cultivated l)y the farmer and 
his family an<l by the use of one or two mules. This is the 
cause of consideraljle variation in the (lualitx- of the cotton. 






D 








120 (OTTOX. [CHAI-. II. 

even from the same district, owiii^ to the difference in care 
and attention paid to the cultivati(»ii hy different farmers. In 
many cases, very little attention is ^ivcn to improviiit;- the 
farm, the negro especially, not being very fond of "intense" 
farming, does as his forefathers have done and neglects the 
nse of improved machinery, deep ploughing, or fertilizing, 
and other features of improved farming. 

The farmer who pays a cash rental for a farm, or who 
pays rent equal to one-fourth or one-third of his crop, and who 
has sufficient spare capital to finance himself until the ingath- 
ering of the crops, is in a fairly good position. Of course, in 
order to raise a big crop, the farm requires a great deal of at- 
tention and employment of labor in the periods from April to 
•July, and again from 8e})teml)er to November; Init it lias been 
stated, and is undoubtedly true, that a cotton farmer by only 
working two days per week on an average throughout the 
year, can raise a crop sufficient to su[)})ort his family. There 
is no doubt that settlers with capital can find a good opening 
in cotton growing, and if they do not succeed it will be from 
the reason indicated at Fig. 51. 

On the other hand, a penurious farmer who starts out by 
guaranteeing some portion of his crop for rent, and then in 
January or February gives a mortgage on the balance of his 
crop, which is not yet sown, and who gives a further chattel 
mortgage in April or May on his household belongings, for 
the purpose of obtaining provisions, tools, fertilizer, new mules 
or wagons, is in a very sorry plight. He is fortunate, if on 
the sale of his crop, any balance remains after paying his 
debts, and the merchant is also fortunate if he gets paid. 

This system leads to a very unnecessary expense in the 
cultivation of cotton and a consequently enhanced price per 
})Ound. The high prices charged l)y the merchant for sup- 
plies, excessive interest on loans, and the fact of being in debt, 
j)revent the farmer from adopting improved systems or devoting 
to his Ijusiness that energy and enter})rise which a man in a 



^'22 COTTON. [ciiAi'. II 

more iii(U'[K'ii(lcii( position would exert, to l»i'iiig down the 
cost of cotton raisiiio- to the lowest possihle point. 

Purchasing supplies on credit prevails to a considerable 
extent, especially among the small fanners. The exact I'ate 
at which the advances are made cannot lie given, as it is not 
charged as interest, but is included in an increased price asked 
for su})plies purchased on credit. It varies from 20 to TOO per 
cent, above the market value of the goods, according to the 
amount of competition among the store-keepers, who here are 
by far the most prosperous class of the community, in propor- 
tion to the skill and capital employed. The better class of 
farmers do not approve of this credit system. It furnishes 
facilities to small farmers, and encourages them to undertake 
operations they cannot make remunerative to themselves ; it 
reduces the number of laborers, and precludes high culture. 

The rental value of land is thus increased, and that 
which could not be sold for $10 may be rented for $5. The 
thrit1;less culture resulting from the small farms, unduly mul- 
ti|)lied by this unhealthy stimulus of credit, causes many acres 
to be thrown yearly out of cultivation. Thus the increasing 
demand to rent land, in consequence of the increasing facili- 
ties for credit, to small farmers, and the constantly diminish- 
ing area of arable Jand resulting from the very imperfect system 
of culture which their lack of means forces them to adopt, 
create high rents, injurious to the small farmer, and impover- 
ish the landlord by deteriorating the quality of his land, as 
well as by al)stracting the labor he could em})loy in remuner- 
ative culture. 

In the above system, it will be seen that cotton has been 
considered as currency, a l)ale of cotton all over the southern 
states being as good as money. The recei})t of a seaport ware- 
house for so many bales of cotton is equal in buying power to 
a greenback in any })art of the state. Warehousing cotton 
does not necessarily im})ly that it is to be sold immediately. 
It lies in safety until tlu^ owner needs the money, or the price 



i5' 




1--^ COTTON. [CIAI-. II. 

is liio'li eii()UL:,li, and then a telegram to the agent to sell all or 
any part of it completes the business. 

Tlie extent to whieh cotton is tlie ecpiivalent of cash in 
the cotton countiy is hardly cfjualled by any product in the 
North, and the time lias l)een when the man with cotton bales 
lauglied at the man who liad nothing Init cash, that is, when 
a bushel of confederate money would hardly buy a ham. In 
those days cotton was a good means of exchange, and the sys- 
tem has thus grown up l)y wliich a Ijale of cotton can be 
ginned for 'I~> Itis. of cotton ; a farm can be rented by the pay- 
ment of one bale out of each two, three, or four raised, and 
the current price of cotton has come to be the standard of 
value. 

The winter is usually a dull season in the cotton dis- 
tricts. The time in some cases is employed in household 
industries. There are still to be found in some parts of the 
South the old spinning wheels and hand looins on which yarn 
and cloth are prepared from home grown wool, of which a 
view is given at Fig. 52, for which I am indebted to Mr. Jos. 
M. Wade of Boston. The occupation for the men is gunning 
or hunting, anglice, shooting quails and other game. 

During the last forty years there has been great improve- 
ment in cotton culture; formerly the virgin soil was culti- 
vated and after it was exhausted a move was made to new 
ground, which was exhausted in turn, but the tendency now is 
to stay on one ftirm, and by means of deep ploughing, heavy 
feitilizing, and by giving great care to the cultivation of the 
cotton the increase of crop per acre reduces the cost per pound. 

When new land has to be cleared it involves considerable 
expense, especially if away from the railroad. In this case 
the lumber that is cut is not worth the hauling to the I'ail- 
road, and is burned on the site or stored for fuel. In a coun- 
try where a large tree can be bouglit foi' ten cents there is 
obviously very little value attached to the mateiial forming 
the virain forest. 







&f% 






J t 














p' 



126 COTTON. [CIIAP. II. 

'I'he clearing of new laud is performed ]>}' tlie I'armer and 
hi.s family until lie reaches the point when the logs are too 
heavy for him to move, and there is then occasion for an old- 
fashioned log rolling. It is only on an occasion like this, a 
camp meeting, or a visit to the market town, that farmers get 
together in any large numbers. The log rolling especialh', 
although now decreasing in popularity with the advent of the 
steam log pullers and other machinery, is still an occasion 
for much whiskey drinking and hilarity. By the aid of a 
large number of men the logs are rolled into huge piles and 
burned. 

In some sections of tli^ country it is not the custom to 
fell all the trees, the large ones, the monarchs of the for- 
est, are left standing, and the bark is stripped from them for 
some, height from the ground, so as to kill them, and they are 
brought down at last by a wind storm. A newly cleared field 
with the gaunt trees still standing is shown at Fig. 53, and an 
old field at Fig. 54. 

The cost of clearing land is usually about $5 an acre 
when away from the railroad ; if the land is sufficiently near 
the railroad to enable the wood to be hauled there and sold, 
the cost of clearing is somewhat reduced, and the wood brings 
from sixty -five cents to two dollars a cord, according to the 
locality. For fuel it is usually estimated that two cords of 
wood efjual one ton of coal. 

Available Area of Cotton Land in the United States. There 
is still a great area suited for cotton in this country which is 
not cultivated. In 18<S<» l.Oi; of the total area of the United 
States was devoted to the cultivation of cotton. Only a small 
percentage of the land adapted for cotton is yet under that 
product, as is shown by the following statistics of the eleventh 
census (1800). 

Taking nine suitable states, which are of sufficient im})ort- 
ance from a cotton raising })oint of view to have one per 
cent, of suitable cotton land, the average per cent, of suitable 



12S 



COTTON. 



[chap. II. 



land under cultivalion is only (i.KJ'i \)L'V cent, of the whole, 



the details of which, ace 

Soutli Carolina 
Mii^sissippi 
Georgia 
Alabama 
Arkan^is . 
Louisiana . 
North Carolina 
Tennessee 
Texas 



ordino- to st 



ites, are 



lO-JU percent. 

i).72 " " 

88(1 " " 

8.37 " " 

5.01 " " 

4.37 " " 

H.()9 " " 

2.80 " " 

2.34 " " 



As shown aboA-e, there is still a very larg-e percentage of 
the area available for cotton raising which may be some time 
put under cotton cultivation, immensely increasing the already 
enormous crop of this staple produced in the United States. 

The tendency of cotton growing is moving gradually 
westward. It was first started on the seacoast of South Caro- 
lina, but now it extends very much further westward. Half 
of the increase of acreage between the tenth census and 
eleventh census of the United States was west of the Mississippi 
River, and, notably in Texas, the western counties are now 
raising large ([uantities of cotton. 

The production of cotton by states, according to the latest 
information which is available, is as under : 

Tlie estimate is by Col. She})person : 



189G-7. 
North Carolina 
South Carolina 
Georgia .... 
Florida .... 
Alabama .... 
Mississippi 
Louisiana 

Texas and Indian Territory 
Arkansas 
Tennessee 
Virginia, IMissouri, Kentucky, etc. 



485,000 bales. 

7G0,000 " 

1,270,000 " 

(10,000 " 

1,000,000 " 

1,220,000 " 

570,000 " 

2,267,000 " 

730,000 " 

300,000 " 

44,000 " 



Total 



8,706,000 bales. 



CHAi'. HI ] COTTON ClLTrUE. i21J 



CHAPTER 111. 

COTTON CULTURE. FERTILIZERS. — SELECTION OF SEED. FOREIGN 

COTTON SEED.- — COTTON PLANTING. CHOPPING OUT. CULTI- 
VATING THE PLANT. COTTON PICKINCi. OPERATIONS OF 

COTTON CULTURE. DAMAGE TO CROPS. CILTIVATION OF SEA 

ISLAND COTTON. 

Cotton Culture. The usual encyclopaedia or text l)()ok 
description of cotton cultivation gives a very clear and })re- 
cise statement of the routine of cotton culture, including the 
dates of all operations, but in practice the cultivation of cot- 
ton cannot be, by any means, so well detined as the move- 
ment of the hands round a clock face. From the extreme 
north-eastern to the extreme south-western corner of the cotton 
growing section of the United States is a distance of 1300 
miles, and there must necessarily be, in so large a territory, 
many systems of farming born of dissimilar training and tra- 
ditions of the farmer. There is a vast ditference in the soils, 
in all gradations from the calcareous "buck.shot" soils of the 
■Mississippi Valley to the sandy belt of North and South Caro- 
lina. The latitude, ranging from 20° in Texas to 37° in Xiv- 
ginia, giving quite a ditferent length of season, is another 
disturbing factor, while in the characteristics of the farmers 
themselves lies the cause of the greatest ditference in method. 
An energetic, skilled man may, and often does, raise a bale or 
more to the acre by the side of another farmer whose indolence 
and ignorance keep him from making half a bale. 

Among the chief points which receive the attention of 
the intelligent farmers are fall or early winter plowing, deep 
plowing, careful selection of seed, retention of seed or seed 
products on the farm as manure, or the replacement of it by 



130 COTTON. [chap. hi. 

suitable fertilizers, and continuous cultivation during the 
growtli of the })lant. On the riclicr classes of soil in southern 
latitudes the fall plowing is almost ini})ossible, as the cotton 
plant produces until winter, and the use of commercial ferti- 
lizers is also often unnecessary, but the other points named 
receive the careful attention of every good farmer. 

In preparing land for a crop of cotton, the tirst treatment 
of the land is known as "breaking up." If the land is new, 
this is almost always done in the fall, but if the land has pre- 
viously l;)een under cotton, many farmers leave the breaking 
up until spring, and then only use a one-horse or one-mule 
plow, going down three or four inches. Some of them only 
disturb the old beds and use them again. The best plan is to 
break up tlie land as soon as possil)le after the old crop of 
cotton is gathered. In case of the old crop having been 
affected by an early frost, the breaking up may take place in 
the winter. 

The stalks of the old cotton have to be dealt Avith. On 
small farms they are often clubbed down, on others a heavy 
limb of a tree is drawn over the field and the plants broken 
down so that they can easily be turned under with the plow. 
Another plan is to have a drag chain attached to the mule 
and plow by whicli the old plants are drawn under the 
operation of the })low, broken up, and turned under. If this 
is done early in the season, their decay is insured before the 
next crop is sown. The u})-to-date farmer uses a mechanical 
stalk cutter, as shown at Fig. 5('). 

The plow may be of many kinds, heavy or light, the latter 
being largely in use for oue-horse work, ^"iews of plows are 
shown at Figs. 57, 58, and 59, the one at Fig. 57 being the 
cheapest one most largely used, while the others are better 
grade. The most useful material for their construction is 
wood ; a wooden plow stock, style as in Fig. 57, may be pur- 
cliased at all prices, from a dollar and a ([uarter ( five sliillings ) 
u}»\vards. The more expensive ones have steel beams, ( Figs. 



CHAI>. III.] 



COTTON' ('rr/rui;E. 



131 




132 CUTTON. [ciiAP. III. 

~)9 and 61 ), and they cost from five dollars ( one pound ) 
upwards. The fanner usually has quite an assortment of 
plow shares or blades which he attaches to the stocks for 
different purposes, some of which are shown on Fig. 00. These 
blades are often worn out by a few days continuous plowing, 
and the quantity and assortment disposed of at the local hard- 
ware store in plowing time is sur})rising. For the illustra- 
tions. Figs. .")() to (31 and also Figs. Go to 69 inclusive, the 
author is indebted to ]\lessrs B. and F. Avery, Louisville, Ky. 

To break up thoroughly a two-horse or two-mule team is 
used, and a plow to give as deep a cut as two mules can pull. 
This depends on the land, but may be from eight inches to 
eleven inches deep. The plow in this case turns the soil over 
on one side, burying all vegetation. (_)ne object in breaking 
up as early as possil)le is to get the vegetation of the previotis 
season turned under while it is yet green and the sap is in it, 
so as to give it a better chance of decaying, thus saving fer- 
tilizer; another is to open up tlie soil to the action of the 
frosts of January and February, which pulverize the earth 
and destroy the insects secreted in the soil. AVhile the fall 
plowing is generally admitted to be beneficial it is not com- 
monly practiced throughout the cotton belt except in Georgia 
and Arkansas, and occasionally in other states. Some farmers 
in rolling country object to fall or winter breaking up on 
account of the tendency to wash-outs during the winter rains. 

The work of preparing the soil begins in earnest in the 
spring, usually about IMarch, a time being chosen when the 
soil is not wet after rain. It may happen that the farmer 
gets two weeks plowing continuously or that his work is con- 
tinually being interrupted by rain. 

If the breaking up has not been performed in the {>re- 
vious fall or winter, the old stalks are clubbed down, and, if 
small, turned in with the soil, or, if large, burned. The latter 
is a wasteful plan, but there is not now time for the large 
stalks to decay before the seed time, and their presence in the 



CHAl'. III.] 



CUTT(.)N CULTURE. 



l;j;i 




Fig. 59. Steel Bearq Plow. 



134 COTTOX. [CIIAI-. 111. 

ground during cultivation disturbs tlie young plant. The 
ground is then broken up with a two-horse plow having a deep 
cut, as previously described. 

The best opportunity now presents itself for inserting 
broad cast the natural manures — cotton seed, which has been 
composted with vegetable matter, acid phosphate and kainit, 
or may be the manure consists merely of barn-yard manure, 
marsh muck, if available, coarse refuse fertilizers, or sweep- 
ings from cotton seed oil and fertilizer mills. 

If fertilized rough cast, then the hari'ow usually used is 
a wooden frame toothed harrow, or one of the many machines 
for pulverizing the soil, by means of rolls on a sliaft or shafts, 
as shown in Fig. 63. 

Tlie next process is bedding-up. Especially on new land, 
the making of the first furrow, or laying-off furrow, is a mat- 
ter of some considerable importance. It may be that a special 
laying-off furrow is made with a shovel plough, to locate the 
beds, but more often the first cut towards bedding-up lays off 
the bed. Especially on uneven ground, laying-off or terrac- 
ing is of much importance, as by a proper arrangement of the 
furrows to give good surface drainage, washouts during heavy 
rains and undesirable accumulations of water are prevented. 
Where possible the water should drain to a branch (small 
stream ). 

The recognized and accepted mode of cultivating cotton 
through all the South is in elevated ridges or beds, varying in 
the distances apart according to the habit of the plant as to 
height and foliage. On rich bottom lands, where the plant 
attains a height of from six to ten feet, as for example in the 
bottom lands of the Mississippi River, the furrows are usually 
six feet apart, diminishing on |)oor land or more northern lati- 
tudes, as in North Carolina or \'irginia, to two and one-half feet. 
An average over the cotton belt would be about four feet. 

The next work is to form these beds. This is done by a 
one-horse turning plow, with a large cut, and the bed is 



CHAl'. 111.] 



COTTON crLTniE 



l;5.-) 




G — Middle Burster. 

Fig. 60. Plow Blades aqd Plow Si^ares. 



l-*)<) COTTON. [ciiAi>. HI. 

formed l»y plowing along the tield, throwing the soil one way, 
and down the opposite side of the bed, throwing the soil to 
meet the previous furrow ; or it may be tliat two plows are 
used, one taking each side of the bed and throwing up the 
soil to meet that thrown up l)y the plow preceding. This is 
I'epeated sometimes twice. By this means tlie compost of 
manure thrown broadcast is turned into the l)ed. 

The operation of "splitting middles out" is now per- 
formed, which consists of running a furrow along the center 
of the bed, throwing the soil to each side to receive the ferti- 
lizer, if any, and later the seed. On small farms this is usu- 
ally done with a special tool attached to the plow, as shown at 
Fig. 61, but on large up-to-date farms a sulky, with middle- 
burster attachment, is often used, as shown at Fig. 05. The 
operation of " bedding-up " is now completed. 

The succeeding operation is manuring the beds by means 
of commercial fertilizers, which are in the form of a powder. 
The most ap})roved plan is to fertilize by means of a machine, 
consisting of a hopper carrying the fertilizer suspended on a 
frame, like that of a wheelbarrow, and usually arranged with 
a movable bottom to the hopper, alternately opened and closed 
by the revolutions of the wheel. This is done by the bottom 
of the hopper being suspended by two rods which rest on a 
series of projections on the wheel. As the wheel revolves, 
these rods drop from one projection to another, and as the bot- 
tom of the hopper opens, fertilizer drops on the shoot and is 
distril)uted regularly. Two shoes behind the machine cover 
up the fertilizer. This is advisalde rather than to lay the 
cotton seed in actual contact with the fertilizer, some kinds of 
which are so strong as to damage the tender i)lant in the early 
days of its germination. 

The more primitive method of fertilizing is by means of 
a fertilizer tube. This is a tin tube some five or six feet long, 
with a funnel at the upper end. The field hand using this 
carfies the fertilizer in a bag suspended from his or her waist 



CHAP. III.] 



FKirriLIZKKS. 



137 



or shoulder, and feeds the tube by haud tlirough tlie funnel, 
the lower end of the tube resting in the place where it is 
desire(l to de[»osit the fertilizer. 

Fertilizers. There are many varieties of these fertilizers. 
Barn-yard manure is used alone to some extent, but it is also 
the practice to use cotton seed in many districts, com})osted 
with acid phosphate and stable manure, sometimes with the 
addition of other litter and lime. The seed is killed by the 
heating of the compost, and is applied broadcast over the land 




Fig. 61. Steel Bean) Plow witl) Middle Burster. 

before breaking up, as before described, or in the drill at the 
rate of a quarter of a ton to a ton per acre. Still these coarse 
manures only form a small })roportion of the fertilizers u.sed 
annually. What are known as commercial or artificial ferti- 
lizers are most largely in use. These are substances which 
contain available phosphoric acid, nitrogen or potash, in the 
best form for assimilation by the growing plant. 

In consequence of the demand for a cheap fertilizer, there 
is frequently only from twelve to twenty per cent, of plant 
food available in tliese manures. There are manv varieties of 



138 COTTON. [(llAl'. 111. 

them ; they may be imjiorted manures, such as German kainit, 
which is an impure ])otash, or as Peruvian guano ; they may be 
domestic fertilizers, removed from some other j)arts of America, 
such as phosi)hate rock from the deposits in Florida and South 
Carohna ; or the fertiUzers may be of local ]n-oduction, as for 
exami)]e, cotton seed meal. More usually, a commercial fer- 
tilizer is a cond)ination of these substances, mixed at the local 
fertilizer works, usually run in connection with a cotton seed 
oil mill. There are many other substances wliicli are of great 
value as })lant ibods, and which are only suited to certain dis- 
tricts. Among these are dried blood, bone meal, horn and 
hoof waste, from the stock yards of Kansas City and Chicago. 

It is very necessary that careful selection of fertilizers 
should be made ; insufficient attention is at })resent given to 
this important matter. The selection of fertilizers depends 
upon many circumstances, such as the nature of the soil, or 
location of the land, the latitude of the state in which the 
cotton is grown, and the state of cultivation of the farm. In 
the more northern latitudes, fertilizer is required that will force 
the crop and bring it to early maturity in consequence of the 
shortness of tlie season, while in the southern latitudes a fei1i- 
lizer should be selected which will cause strong growth of the 
plant rather than unusually early marketing of the staple, for 
there is usually in the more southern states sufficient time to 
})ick all the cotton tliat a plant will make. 

The decision as to a suitable fertilizer to use should be deter- 
mined by analysis. It is not the object of this book to recom- 
mend fertilizers, but any cotton planter desirous of finding the 
best manure to use on his land has generally at his call expert 
analysts in connection with his state department of agriculture. 
By submitting samples of his soil, and a statement of his agri- 
cultural conditions, he can obtain local expert advice which 
will be of great value to him. It is undoubtedly advisable to 
buy fertilizers on the result of analysis. Frequently an appar- 
ently high priced fertilizer may be cheaper than a low priced 



CHAP. Ill] 



FKHTIIJZKKS. 



139 




140 COTTON. [cilAi-. HI. 

one. A fertilizer that has the hxrgest })ercentage of phmt food 
is ultimately of less cost to the fsirmer, in consequence of his 
saving the cost of freight, handling and liagging, a large per- 
centage of useless material. Most of the southern states have 
state laws for the protection of the farmer in regard to the 
purity of fertilizers, and many states levy taxes on tlie handling 
of fertilizers, in order to maintain tlie control of the analyses 
and to prevent fraud. 

The quantity of fertilizer used on each acre of land is also 
a matter for local decision. The best results of fertilizing are 
not obtained in the first year or even in the second year ; the 
fertilizer used the first year has an influence on the second and 
third years, and the system of continued fertilizing improves 
the yield more in the third and fourth years in proportion to 
the amount of fertilizer used than in the first and second. As 
has been before stated, some lands do not require any fertiliz- 
ing, other lands require from half a ton to a ton per acre. 
The quality of the fertilizer and the state of the land determine 
the quantity to Ijo used. 

Cotton Culture, In cases where it is desired to dispense 
with as much work as possible and where cotton is [)lanted on 
the same ground year after year, even the j^reliminary break- 
ing up is dispensed with and the first or laying off furrow is 
run down the alley of the former year's cotton. Manure com- 
posts are laid in the first furrow and the new bed made ])V 
turning the soil on top of this. Still another plan is to l)ar ott' 
the old bed and run the new furrow through its center; this 
brings the plants on the same spot each year. 

It is a debatable point whether the practice of planting 
on ridges is as advisable as it is to plough the land deeply 
and then sow the seed on the level ground. The ridge system 
has grown up with the system of light tillage, wherel)y the 
surface of the land receives only perhaps a two or three inch 
scratching, but a Ijed is formed ten inches deep or more by the 
soil being thrown up on each side. A good seed bed is thus 



CHAP. 111.] 



COTTON cri/rr ]<!•:. 



141 




Fig. 63. Disc Cultivatcr. 



142 COTTON. [( n\i'. III. 

easily formed, but it does not retain the moisture durinti- the 
growino- season as does a deeply ploughed field. 

Cotton Planting. After the ground has bean manured it 
is left until ])lanting time. This varies according to the lati- 
tude of the district in question. Ijut it may be accepted as 
occurring in A}>ril in the vast majority of districts. In some 
of the favored districts of ]\Iississi})pi, Louisiana and Texas, 
where the season is abnormally long, seed is planted in the 
latter part of Marcli. In the heart of the cotton belt April Tst 
is accepted as a suitable date ; in North and South Carolina 
and Tennessee it is considered unwise to plant before April 
loth ; while in the extreme northern edge of the belt, as in 
^"irginia, planting is deferred to the last days of April or early 
in May. 

It has long been an accepted rule among the planters 
that when tlie dogwood blooms seed time has come, while 
another is that seed time will come ninety days from when the 
katydid is first heard. 

Selection of Seed. The selection of seed is a matter of 
im[)ortance. The too common method of saving seed for 
planting is to take a sufficient numl)er of bushels just as they 
come from the gin, or, perha})s, to buy them from an oil mill. 
No attention has thus been given to the selection of individual 
plants from which these seeds came, and tho.se from the poor- 
est, least prolific, and latest maturing are all taken together 
with those from the best ; seeds from less prolific plants will 
.have greater vitality and so produce stronger plants than those 
from the more prolific plants, and when this })rocess is 
repeated for a few generations it is sure to result in a marked 
decrease in yield and a deterioration in quality. 

A process of selection has been practiced for many years 
by wide-awake planters and the result is an immense num- 
ber of "agricultural" varieties, ofcour.se, not botanical ones. 
Cotton is a plant wdiich sports easily, which responds (juick- 
ly to any differences in environment, soil, climate, treatment 








-^ i 







vA - <- • . 



144 



COTTON. 



[ciiAi-. III. 



and fertilizers, and which can be greatly moditied in form and 
habit in a very few successive crops. The flowers are large 
and open, so cross fertilization is not only common, but u^ual. 

By selecting seed from plants showing good yield, earl}'- 
fruiting, length and fineness of sta[)le, by planting these 
seeds separately and again selecting the best, several very fine 
strains of seeds have been oljtained and are usually known by 
the names of the planters who originated them. 

By far the larger number of names of varieties now in 
cultivation are simply synonyms of other names. C'hanges of 
names are commonly made by using the name of the person 
from whom seed is purchased, giving a new name to an 
old variety for advertising purposes, substituting a local name 
for one in general use, or transferring names froni one locality 
to another. Often several varieties receive the same name. 

The leading varieties are Allen Seed, Bates, Boyd Prolific, 
Cherry Cluster, Cook, Dickson, Drake Cluster, Okra, Peterkin, 
Taylor, Smith, Peeler, Texas Storm Proof, and Herlong. 

Two tables are here given from l>ulletin 33 of the 
United States Department of Agriculture. 

I. Classification of varieties according to time of matu- 
rity. 



Early. 



Medium. 



Late. 



Bailey. 

Brooks Improved. 

Cherry Cluster. 

Dickson. 

Drake Cluster. 

Early Carolina. 

Grayson Early Prolitie. 

Huiinicutt. 

Jenkins. 

Kieth. 

King. 

Matthews. 

Oats. 

Okra. 

Ozier. 

Peerless. 

Pittmau. 

Welbora Pet. 

Williamson. 

Zellner. 



Barnett. 

Bates Big Boll. 

Hen Smith. 

Boyd Prolific. 

Brannon. 

East. 

Eureka. 

Grifflih. 

Hawkins. 

Herlong. 

Jones Long Staple. 

Magruder Marvel. 

Mattis. 

Moon. 

Peterkin. 

Peterkin Cluster. 

Petit Gulf. 

Pollock. 

Six Oaks. 



Allen. 

Barnes. 

Bates Favorite. 

Brag. Long Staple. 

Catawba. 

Champion Cluster. 

Cobweb. 

Colthorp Pride. 

Cook. 

Ellsworth. 

Ethridge. 

Jones Improved. 

Mammoth Prolific. 

Marston. 

Minter. 

Peeler. 

Southern Hope. 

Texas Storm Proof. 

Truitt Premium. 

Willis. 



CHAT, in.] 



SELl'".! rioX Ol" SKKD. 



14.-) 




Fig. 65. Caltivator "Witli Middle Burster. 



l-i() COTTON. [CIIAI'. III. 

ir. Relative rank as regards yield of different varieties : 



Haggerman 

Texas Wool 

Taylor 

Braniiaii 

Peturkiii 

Fishlmrn 

TlKimas 

Keith 

Drake Cluster 

Excelsior 

King 

Boyd Prolific 

Truilt Premium. . 

Barnett 

Duncan 

Huunicutt 

Jones Improved. . 

Peerless 

Texas Storm Proof 
Early Carolina. . . 

Bailey 

Rogers 

Diclison 

Deering 

Peterkin Cluster. . 

Shine Early 

Welboru Pet 

Ben Smith 

Dean 

Crawford Peerless 






149 

143 

177 

140 

171 

149 

157>^ 

134 

15-2 

1.54 

173 

1.56 

161 

126 

129 

134 

135 

143 

176-- 

126 

132 

122 

141 

150 

124 

132 

185 

139 

105 

155 



101 
105 
96 
102 
70 
95 
101 
101) 
88 
84 
76 
68 
40 
S3 
86 
74 
82 
76 
69 
83 
79 
94 
74 
80 
80 
61 
73 
73 



131 
123 
119 
117 
116 
116 
115 
114 
112 
109 
lOS 
107 
106 
106 
105 
105 
105 
105 
104 
101 
104 
104 
103 
103 
103 
103 
103 
102 
102 
101 



^■arietv. 



s 



Hawkins 

Ozier 

Southern Hope. . . . 

Ellsworth 

Oats 

Cocliran 

Eureka 

Chambers 

Ethridge 

Hays China 

Jowers 

Willis 

Cherry Long Staple 
Jf)nes Long Staple. 

Peeler . . . 

Petit Gulf 

Okra 

Allen 

Bolivar County 

Rameses ' 

Zellner 

Cobweb 

East 

Cherry Cluster 

Matthews 

Colthorp Pride 

Cook 

Six Oaks 

Wonderful 



148 
119 
139 
125 
120 
130 
140 
101 
117 
114 
128 
112 
132 
136 
108 
132 
124 
144 
116 
105 
105 
103 
113 
123 
111 
99 
123 
126 
113 



101 
100 
99 
99 
99 
98 
98 
97 
97 
97 
97 
97 
96 
96 
96 
96 
95 
94 
94 
94 
94 
93 
92 
90 



[ The average for all varieties taken as 100.] 

Of course the origin of many varieties has been lost in 
obscurity, but from what information has been gathered it 
appears that the most fre(juent methods by which genuine 
new^ varieties have been originated have been by ( 1 ) the 
selection of individual plants for original stock ; ( 2 ) the sav- 
ing of seed from the earliest maturing bolls, and planting them 
(usually) on soil which has been highly fertilized ; (3) cross 
fertilization : and ( 4 ) the very simple i)rocess of changing 
the names. 

Foreig:n Cotton Seed. Seed from other countries lias been 
tried. \^arieties received from Japan produced very dwarf 
plants, with small bolls, very small seeds, and a staple not 
more than one-half to five-eighths of an inch long, which has 



CHAl'. Ill ] 



FOKKKiX COTTON ^V.KD. 



147 



been liai'sli and woolly. 'J'urkestan cottons have been uni- 
formly lis^lit in yield, short and weak in staple, and usually 
somewhat colored. The Egyptian varieties are closely related 
to the Sea Island, and produce an immense orowtli of stalk. 
Mitafifi and Bamia are the two varieties which have been most 
widely tested, but neither has proved to be profitable. Both 
produce a very long and fine staple, but mature too late for 
the Anu'rican climate. Possil)ly in Texas greater success 
mio-ht be met with. Seeds of l)oth these varieties wei-e dis- 




^»ij»L 



Fig. 66. Dowlavv) Cortoq Plaqter. 



tributed quite freely by the United States Department of Agri- 
culture in 1892, and since then a number of hybrids between 
them and some of the American upland varieties have been 
reported, which promise to have considerable value, espec- 
ially in the southern part of the cotton region. The Indian 
varieties which have been received have been of two distinct 
types. One is much like the Japanese varieties in leaf, boll 
and lint, but produces a large and spreading plant which 
bears a very light crop. The other type is evidently descended 



148 COTTOX. [fllAl'. III. 

fVom the American seed which was sent to India in ]S44, and 
which has become c^uite common in that country. It is inter- 
esting to note that this American cotton, wliich has been 
grown in India for fifty years, has come V)ack to this country 
practically unchanged, and cannot now be distinguished from 
the Petit Gulf, which was so common in America from 18;'>(> 
to ISnO. 

While the seed from other countries has not, as a rule, 
been successfully used here, the same applies to American seed 
sent abroad. 

Some years ago a shipment of American seed was sent to 
Russia, for use in Russian Turkestan, and it was found that 
although the seed germinated, the plants attained a good 
heiglit, and even formed bolls, yet these bolls would not open. 
To test the seed a barrel of it was shipped back from Turkes- 
tan to the United States. This seed never came up, prol)al)ly 
in consequence of being killed by heating in transit. 

Cotton Planting. For cotton planting, a machine called 
a planter is used by the more advanced farmer, and a })opular 
one, the Dowlaw planter, is shown in Fig. Gi). This econo- 
mises seed, plants the seed more evenly, produces a better 
stand, and facilitates cultivation. Planters can be arranged 
so that the machine opens the drill, drops the seed, and covers 
it up afterwards ; but the most approved system is to run it 
over the center of the bed with a bull tongue blade. Fig. 60 
A, on the plough, so as to open the bed exactly over the fer- 
tilizer. 

The planter is then drawn over the row Ijy a mule or 
horse, and deposits the seed continuously, covering it up lightly 
by means of two shoes behind the })lanter, or a Ijoard, as in 
Fig. 66. 

The planter may be described as a wheelbarrow, with a 
hole in the bottom. The wheel is of wood and is formed 
almost to an edge ; immediately in front of it is a tool for 
opening the drill, which may, or may not, be used, as has 



CHAP. Ill ] 



COTTON I'l.AXTIXO. 



149 



previously been mentioned. Attached to the wheel is a crank 
connected by a wooden rod to a lever attached to the seed box. 
The reciprocating movement given to this lever opens and 
closes alternately the seed orifice in the box, the slide keeping 
a constant delivery of seed by moving backwards and for- 
wards, while a board behind the seed box, suspended on 
s})rings, levels the toj) of the ridge, covering up the seed. An- 
other method of })lanting is to use the tube previously men- 




Fig. 67. Cortoq Plaqfer aqd Fertilizer. 



tioned as in use for fertilizing. In this case, the bed has to be 
opened by a light i)low, and after the seed has been dropped 
through the tube, a harrow, a wooden block, or a board, is 
drawn over the field to cover up the seed. This is only in use 
on small farms which are rented, and where the farmer, gen- 
erally a negro, cannot afford, or has not the desire to pay $5 
for a planter. It is astonishing how the negro clings to old- 
time methods, and how slow he is to see any advantage in 



150 COTTON. [CJIAP. III. 

" white folks' " iinprovemonts. (X'tcii lie will not admit that 
cultivation has anything to do with it : hut his explanation of 
the greater success of his neighhor is that Massa Johnsing has 
great luck, Ijccause he is the possessor of a left hind foot of a 
graveyard jack rahl)it, which he "totes" round. He is cor- 
rect in so far as the white ^"outherner often does carry such a 
fetish with him. 

Another method is to use a machine shown in Fig. 67. 

As will he seen from the sketch, there is a revolving seed 
or fertilizer holder, driven hy a sprocket wheel and chain from 
the hub of the driving wheel. It has a tool in front to open 
the drill, and two shoes to close up the drill after the seed lias 
been drop})ed. Seed and fertilizer can be deposited together 
by this machine, l)ut the disadvantage of this method is ])rin- 
cipally in the seed being planted in contact with the fertilizer, 
and the advantage is that it combines two journeys over the 
bed in one. 

It is a good machine ibr rich land, where little fertilizer 
is needed, and the quantity deposited is insufficient to injure 
the germinating seed. On light, sandy soil the planter covers 
the seed sufficiently, but on heavy clay soil, or other lumj»y 
formation, it is occasionally the custom to run a turning plow 
up and down each row to complete the bed, or more usually a 
harrow is drawn over the field. 

In moist, warm weather, the cotton gei'minates rapidly, 
and on a large farm that first })lanted may appear above the 
ground before the last seed has been sown. Three da3^s after 
planting is about the earliest recorded appearance of the seed- 
ling, and in dry or cold weather, it may extend to as many 
weeks. The average time may be taken as seven days. The 
plants appear in a broken line, the spaces being caused by the 
non-germination of seed or the irregularity of planting ; and 
still there are far too many plants in the row, so many 
as to obstruct each other's growth and grow too thickly for 
cultivation, or the light and heat of the sun to develop the 



CHAP. 111.] 



COTTON PLANTING. 



151 




152 COTTON. [riiAC. III. 

flowers and the fruit. The whole field has, therefore, to l)e 
thinned out. 

Chopping: Out. The thinning out is acconiplished by 
killing the sur]»lus plants by a cut from a hoe, and thus a 
more expressive term often used is " chopping-out." This is 
one of the two great expenses of cotton culture, the other 
being cotton picking, ('hopping out requires the services of 
every one on the farm, man, woman, and child, aiid often 
some hired help, if it is to be had. All through the month of 
May the railroad traveller sees the field hands at work, letting 
their heavy hoes drop apparently carelessly, but really with 
great i)recision, cutting away a dozen plants for each three left 
standing, but always leaving the right ones. 

As they mechanically raise and drop their hoes, they sing 
soi]gs and tell stories of the latest appearance of the " banshee 
behind Growler's hill"; or the terrible apparition in " ^Ir. 
Johnsing's barn yard," or the " hoodoo that has been put on 
Mr. Thompson's farm." These ghost stories, however, must 
be taken on faith for no white man ever hears them. The 
moment a white man appears on the field, the talking stops 
and every boy and girl is a model of industry. 

The distance left between each plant in the row is a mat- 
ter which depends on the soil and the usual groAvth of the 
plant. In the inclined lands of Texas, Mississippi and Louis- 
iana, as much as two feet, or even three feet, are exce})tionally 
left between the plants, but the jdant in these districts grows 
to a height of six or eight feet, or even more. In all other 
sections of the same states, and generally over the cotton belt, 
eight to twelve inches are left between plants on poor land, 
and twelve to fifteen inches on richer land. 

In the North, for example North Carolina, Tennessee, and 
^"irginia, it is exceptional to leave more than twelve inches. 
After all it is the number of plants that makes cotton, and the 
tendency in all the states is towards closer planting on tlie 
ridges, leaving full spaces between ridges, the belief being that 



CHAP. Ill ] 



CHOPPING OUT. 



ir)3 




Fig. 69 R. Rn UnpicKed Cottoq Field — Morriirig. 




Fij. 69 B. The Sanqe Field PicKed — Evening. 



l-"')4 COTTON. [ciiAi'. m. 

it is suffic'lent if the })lant8 get })leiity of sun one way. Some 
very interesting exi)eriments liave been condueted by the 
agricultural de})artments of various states, but although close 
planting is undoubtedly shown to decrease the yield of each 
plant, the aggregate production is greater on account of the 
much larger number of plants in the field. An extract from 
the bulletin of the Georgia agricultural department shows this 
very clearly. 

( 1. ) On land capable of making between one and one 
and five-tenths bales of cotton per acre, the plants should not 
be closer than four l)y two feet nor wider than four by three 
feet. 

( 2. ) The greater distance given, the more important it 
is to secure an early stand, thin out early and give rapid cul- 
tivation. 

( 3. ) Close planting gives a larger yield in the early fall 
or at the first and second pickings. ( The four by one series 
in the experiment was 161 pounds ahead of the four by two ser- 
ies at the close of the fourth picking, Oct. lo ). This is because 
each plant, when planted closely, will make nearly, if not 
quite, as many blooms in the first few weeks of blooming 
as each plant in widely planted rows. Between the date of 
the first and second pickings, a period of twelve days, one 
pound of cotton was yielded by every fifteen plants in the four 
by one series, while in the four by two series, twelve plants 
were required to make one jxjund. A\']ien it is considered 
that there are only 5005 plants to the acre in the four by two 
series, against 9250 plants in the four by one series, the 
explanation of the greater yield of the four by one series in 
the second picking is plain. At the fiftli })icking, Nov. 4th, 
forty -three plants in the four by one series yielded one pound, 
while in the four by two, only thirteen plants 3aelded one 
pound. 

Machines have been invented and tried for the purpose of 
performing the chopping out, but without satisfactory results. 



CHAP. HI,] 



('II(»l'l>IN(i OUT. 



1 oo 




150 COTTON. [ciiAi". III. 

It requires a certain amount of judgment to select the most 
suitable plants to leave, in oi'dei- to get a good stand, and the 
thinning out is all done by niainial labor. 

The plant is allowed to make three or tour leaves before 
tliinning out, attaining a height of five or six inches. 

Cultivatingf the Plant. An anxious and busy time now 
ensues for the u})-to-date farmer. He is afraid lest the first 
few nights of May should be cold. Cotton loves moist heat. 
Warm days and warm nights in ^lay add a million l)ales to 
the crop, but warm days and cold nights, even though the 
thermometer does not fall to freezing point, may so weaken the 
young plants that it is not wise to allow them to remain, and 
there is nothing left but to plow them up and replant. He is 
also scared lest he mav have too much rain, causing the 
growth of grass on his field and weed on the plants (the word 
" weed " being used through the South to indicate superfluous 
growth of stalk and leaf, and tendency to run to wood ), or 
else that he may have too dr}^ weather for his cotton to make 
proper progress, encouraging rust and cotton worms. His 
time is all occupied in "cultivating" the land, which term, 
although applied generally to the whole series of operations 
of raising cotton, is used more specifically for the operations 
between thinning out and cotton picking, the object of which 
is to keep the field free from vegetation, crab grass, cow-vetch, 
rag-weed, cockleburr, morning glory and such vines, so called. 

This season is a succession of plowing and hoeing. "A 
long row to hoe" has long been a proverbial expression. 
Usually to clear the grass on the side of the beds the farmers 
bar off the soil from each side of tlie ridge l)y a turn plow, or 
twisting shovel })low. The soil and weed are allowed to remain 
in the bottom of the alley until tlie grass is killed, then by 
means of a sweep the soil is thrown up to the foot of the jdant 
again. This barring off is occasionally performed before thin- 
ning out, and after the surplus plants have been choi)ped out 
the soil is thrown up again to the root of the plant. The 



en A I'. Ill] 



TT/nVATTXC TIIK IM.ANT 




158 COTTOX. [CIIAI>. III. 

operation can only be pcrfonned up to the time when a stand 
has been formed, as otherwise the spreading roots of the plants 
are damaged, 'j'here follow, at different intervals, according to 
the weather and progress of tlie grass, several hoeings and 
plowings, nsually in all about three hoeings and four plowings. 
The hoeing is performed by negroes principally, although a 
white farmer presses his family into service and they pass 
through the rows, chopping down grass and objectionable 
vegetation, occasionally cutting down a cotton plant where 
weakly or where the shrubs are planted too thickly. 

Too much emphasis cannot be placed on the fact that 
heat helps the cotton plant wonderfully. Warm da37s and 
nights with occasional showers increase the cro|) ]^ros|)ects 
exceedingl}'. 

The soil is kept disturbed in all possil)le ways, plows with 
plow shares, sweeps (Fig. (30C ), scooters (Fig. <)<d)), l)ull- 
tongues (Fig. 60A ), and other tools, mechanical cultivators, 
shown at Figs. (58 and 60, and other contrivances are all used, 
but the favorite tool is the swee}) attached to the plow. There 
are many varieties of these sweeps, a different form being used 
in almost every state. They are attached to the stock of the 
])low l)y bolts and are winged tools, that is, the soil is thrown 
to both sides by the operation of the two slopes on the tool. 
A^arious forms of these are shown at Fig. GO, D being a jNlem- 
phis shovel, E and F l;)lades for cultivators, and G is the mid- 
dle burster previously named. ])e}»th of cultivation gradually 
diminishes as the ground hlls up with roots, and in the last 
operation the surface is merely skimmed, the })low being kept 
almost out of the ground. Deep plowing is injurious a month 
affer the thinning out has taken place. 

The object in all this cultivation is not only to keep down 
the grass, but to retain the moisture in the soil. During June 
and July moisture in the soil or humidity in the air benefits 
the plant most materially, and by keeping the soil loose and 
open the desired end is attained. Later, when it is desired to 



CHAT. Ill] 



CULTIVATIXfi Tin-: PLANT. 



ir,<) 




160 COTTON. [chap. hi. 

make the ]ilant fruit and the hulls hurst, the crop is laid l)y 
and the ground allowed to harden and dry. 

It is the aim of all the farmers to couiplete cultivation hy 
the end of June, and then, to use their expression, " the crop 
is laid l)y." This })eriod of rest usually hegins from the first 
to the fifteenth of July, according to the season, and inclucles 
the remainder of July and as much of the month of August 
as elapses before the commencement of picking. It is the aim 
of the farmer to lay by his crop between the first and fourth 
of July where possible. 

This is the happy time of the negro f\\rmer ; his pockets 
are empty, but he knows it is only a matter of a few weeks 
before he will have his crop on the market, and he forgets his 
poverty and the year of toil just ended, and indulges in the 
luxury of a camp meeting. This combination of Christianity 
and heathenism, devotion and profanity, is usually lield at 
this time of the year. 

During all this period of cultivation tlie plant has been 
making progress in its growth, as described in its life history 
in a previous chapter, and the farmer now only awaits the 
reward of his labors. The first flowers of the season have 
appeared, and Fig. 70 represents a cotton field in flower. This 
is not so attractive a scene as might be imagined, the flowers 
are not large and are not even noticeable in the large mass of 
dark green foliage, which stretches in an almost unbroken 
sheet. ^ 

Cotton Picking. Picking in an average season com- 
mences in August, beginning from the first of August in some 
parts of Texas to the last of August in the northern states of 
the cotton l)elt. 

Occasionally in an abnormally early season, such as in 
1895-189(), some cotton is picked in July. In the season 
named, the first bales of new crop cotton appeared on the 
market in July from several states, l)ut this is of course very 
unusual. 



CIIAI'. III.] 



COTTON ncKixc;. 



1(51 




162 , COTTON. [diAP. III. 

The picking season absorbs all the sur})lLis labor of tlie 
cotton states.N The number of hands required for cultivating 
is entirely insufficient to suffice for picking, and this operation 
is consequently the most expensive part of cotton growing, 
not only because of the additional help required, but also by 
reason of having to pay com}>aratively high wages to the 
specially hired negroes. The fields have changed from green 
to a snowy white. All colored men, women and children are 
picking cotton. 

" Picking time " is a season that is dreaded by Georgia 
house-wives. A treasure of a cook can make more money 
picking at forty cents a hundred pounds than she can make 
in the kitchen, and slie throws up her place forthwith and be- 
comes a field hand. When the season is over, she is glad to 
go back to her pans, and generally her mistress is glad to take 
her back. 

" We hear of strikes all over the country among all con- 
ditions of labor, but our cotton pickers never strike or give 
any troul)le," said a young ])lanter the other day as he sur- 
veyed his whitened fields. " If the cotton in either of the 
fields out in front here — there are about sixty bales of it open 
— should have to stand, say, a week, it would be ruined. The 
negroes know this as well as I do, and they know also that 
they are the only ones to pick it ; but never in a single in- 
stance is anything said about raising the price of picking or 
refusing to pick. The negroes are the most tractable, easily 
managed laborers in existence, if you understand them. 
When they get unruly and ugly it is because they have been 
persistently rubbed the wrong way and treated unfairly. It 
is that kind of dealing, in my opinion, that is at the bottom of 
most of the troubles that result in lynching. I am the only 
white man on tliis big tract of land, 5000 acres or more. I 
have thii'ty-five negro tenants and their families on the place, 
l)esides the hands who work the land tliat I plant myself. I 
have never had anv troul)le with them yet, l)ey()nd a little 



CHAP. Ill 



fOTTOX PICKlXd 



1(33 







164 COTTON. [niAi'. III. 

stealing now and then, and my iatlii'i- never had any Ijcfore 
me." 

After the cotton has been })ieked and ginned, it goes to 
the press and comes out inl)ales. Then about Christmastime, 
perhaps a little before or a little after, the tide of bales begins 
to flow towards town and the railroad station. 

The field in an ordinary season is picked over three times. 
In the Gulf states the times of the three })ickings are : — 
First, August and September. 
Second, October. 
Third, November and December. 

In (leorgia, North and South Carolina, Tennessee, Arkan- 
sas, the three occasions of picking fall in September, October, 
and November respectively. There is, of course, no fixed rule 
for this, the weather greatly affecting the time of picking, as 
also does the forward or backward state of the crop. When 
the black frost, or killing frost, comes late, there is usually 
considerable gleaning in December and January. The pick- 
ing season is perhaps the most })icturesque time during the 
cotton growing. 

Cotton picking appears to be veiT easy work. The fruit 
hangs from the bolls apparently ready to drop into the hand 
if touched, and to watch the cotton pickers' quick movements 
and swift clearing of the bolls, there seems to be no difficulty 
at all. But in fact the cotton clings somewhat tenaciously to 
its pod, and the projecting points of the outer boll or c;i}»sule 
prevent the easy removal of the fibre, consequently rapid })ick- 
ing of cotton is the result of practice and experience. It is 
very tiresome work in the northern latitudes, where the })lant 
is only eighteen inches or two feet in height, making one's 
back ache, and here the pickaninnies are found very useful, so 
much so that northern cotton is often called " l)umble-bee " 
cotton. This is clearly shown in Fig. 71. Fig. 72 shows a 
field where the leaves have dropped from the cotton plant, 
leaving only the bare stalks and the bolls open and unopen. 



ClIAI'. Ill] 



CO'llON l'I(KlN<i 



1(35 







1()<) COTTON. [(1IAI>. III. 

As the leaves of the ])lant assume their autumn tints, the 
fields (lotted with white as far as the eye can reach, the flow- 
ers of the top growth, the motley costumes of the negroes of 
all grades of color, from the almost white "yellow girl" to 
the coal black powerful nigger, who looks as if lie had just 
been trans])lanted from the Congo, and who picks his 300 tl)s. 
per day, all combine to form one of the really interesting 
scenes of the world's every-day lite. ( l^^ig- "3). Still more 
interesting is it to see them gather round the weigher as the 
sun sinks low in the west, when each weary picker rests on his 
or her basket, waiting for it to be weighed and Ijooked, as 
shown at Figs. 74 and 75. 

In the morning, the cotton ])icker starts as soon as the 
dew has disappeared from the open boll, and begins at the end 
of a row of cotton, deftly grasping the boll with one hand, 
and with one adroit movement stripping the boll of its seed 
and cotton, transferring it to a bag slung round the waist, and 
emptying this at the end of the row into a basket or larger 
bag. An interesting comparison is shown at Fig. GO. The 
upper portion of the figure is reproduced from a photograph 
of a cotton field, taken by the writer in the morning of a 
November day, before the third ])icking. The lower picture 
is a photograph of the same field in the afternoon after it is 
picked. 

Ah^chines have been introduced l»y many inventors for 
picking cotton, but none have hitherto been successful. The 
principal difficulty lies in the fact of the cotton ripening at 
different periods, consequently the machines hitherto intro- 
duced do great damage to unopen l)olls an<l unri])e cotton, 
wliile gathering tlie fully develo[)ed fibre. Machines also 
gather a large (juantity of trash, so that the cotton is of a 
lower grade than hand-picked, as the field hand can avoid 
gathering the leaf and trash, thus improving the grade. 
Machine picked cotton has to be sorted by hand l)efore it can 
be ginned. 



CHAI'. III.] COTTON I'K'KIXC;. 107 

As the cotton is weighctl it is loaded into wagons and 
hauled off to the farm yard ( Fig. 104 ) to be housed until the 
neighborhood gin is at liberty, when it is again loaded into 
wagons and taken there. 

The small tenant farmer usually stores the seed cotton in 
liis own house until he has enough for a bale, while on the 
very large plantations, a gin house is run by the planter and 
the cotton is ginned as it is gathered. 

Cotton gins badly if damp, and consequently picking is 
not iisuall}^ practiced in the very early morning till the dew is 
dried off, nor is the cotton picked soon after a rain. Moisture 
is added after ginning if desired. 

Operations of Cotton Culture* A list of the necessary 
operations in their })roper se(|uence with the month in which 
each is usually })erformed, both for poor farming and for good 
farming, is given below. It is assumed that the land has been 
previously cultivated. 

Poor Farming. 
Forming bed by turning out old rows, March. 
Sowing seed, and possibly fertilizer, April. 
Chopping out, May. 
Cultivating more or less, June. 
Picking, September, October, November. 

Good Farming. 

Breaking u}), burying vegetation, l)roadcast manuring and 
harrowing, December and January. 

Bedding up, February. 

Fertilizing in drills, March. 

Sowing seed in drills, April. 

Bari'ing outside of row, cho])})ing out to a stand and 
throwing u}) to root, INIav. 

Cultivating by })low and hoe, scooter, scrai)er, sweep or 
cultivator, latter end of May or in June. 

Laying b)% part of July and part of August. 



16S COTTON. [tiiAP. in. 

Picking', August, Se})tcMnl)i'r, October, November, and if 
the season be an open one, December and even January. 

A shorter summary of tlie different stages of cotton cuUi- 
vatioii is : — 

breaking up and plowing, .Jamiarv, Februarv and 
March. 

Cotton planting, April. 

('hopping out, May. 

Cultivating with })low and hoe, June. 

Laying by, July and August. 

Picking, September, October, November and Decemljer. 

The principle of rotation of crops, so strongly advocated 
in British agriculture, and, in fact, in all agriculture, is admit- 
tedly benehcial to land used for cotton growing. The Ameri- 
can cotton farmers admit it, Init judging from agricultural 
reports do not practice it to any extent. Cotton is the 
crop they like, tlie crop they are accustomed to, and it is 
usuall.y cotton that is planted. Again, if the rotation of 
crops provided for cotton to l)e i)lanted two years out of four, 
there would be far too much wheat, corn, and other cereals, 
grown for the requirements of the inhabitants, and in grain 
growing for the market the South cannot compete with the 
Northwest. It is, therefore, somewhat difficult to carry out 
the principle of rotation of crops to its acknowledged conclu- 
sion, and as an alternative it is more general in the recently 
settled i)arts to cultivate a tract of land for a number of years, 
exhaust it and commence again on virgin soil, leaving the 
other land fallow for the same length of time, when it is found 
to have recovered its fertility. This is very general in Texas, 
where new land is cleared and used without fertilizer for a few 
years. If all the seed and stalks are returned to the soil and 
only the lint taken away, it will yield good results for ten 
years without fertilizers, then when the land begins to tire, a 
new tract is cleared and fenced in, and the process re})eated. 
It is not very general to mix any other crop with cotton. 



CHAP. Ill ] OPKRATIONS OF COTToX CULTUKK. 



160 




Fig. 76. Mosaic Disease, or Yellow Leaf Bligl^t. 
Maorosporium form. 




Fig. 77. fi.ntt)racqose. 



1~0 COTTOX. [cilAP. 111. 

;iltli(Hi^li the writer lias seen onipc vines j)lante(l in I'ows 
alxint twenty-tive feet apart, and tlie intei'vening space undo- 
cotton ; also peach trees and cotton yrowii together, as shown 
in Fig. ()4. In some districts corn is planted with cotton, to 
attract the cotton worm from the cotton, this corn 1)eing 
named " trap corn." 

The practice of systematic drainage of the suh-soil is not 
at all general in southern agricultural circles. In certain dis- 
tricts, })roperly carried out, this would add to the yield of the 
crop and materially decrease the amount of weed, the lan<i 
rt'quiring less cultivation. 

Damage to Crops. However carefully cotton may be 
cultivated, there are three important natural causes of damage 
to the crop which occasionally neutralize the efforts of the 
most careful farmer; these are. first, diseases of the plant; 
second, attacks of insects; third, unsuitable weather. The 
diseases of the plants are thus summarized by Prof. (}. V. 
Atkinson of ( "ornefl University : — 

" Investigations, continued for several years, have brouglit 
to light several quite well characterized maladies of the cotton 
plant in the United States. Some of these are physiological in 
tljeir nature, being due to disturbances of nutrition and assim- 
ilation. 

Other diseases of this j)lant are due to the action of fungus 
organisms, which live as parasites in various |)arts of the 
plant, consuming the nutriment and causing destructive 
changes, which bring about the death of the \nni attacked, if 
not of the entire plant. The term "rust," fre(|uently detined 
as "red rust" or "black rust," has become so general in its 
ap[)lication as to be utterly valueless other than in eonveying 
the notion of disease. If we accept the term "cotton rust" 
as simply synonymous with eotton disease, it will tend to 
eliminate much of the confusion which must necessarily result 
should the term be accepted for any single disease, and the 
great indefiniteness which has clustered around this term as a 



CHAT. 111.] 



I)A.MA(iK TO ciiors. 



171 




Fig. 78. Root Rot. 




Fig. 79. flrceolate Milde-W. 



IT'2 COTTON. [chap. III. 

name for a single disease will Ije cleared away. By the ap|»li- 
catioii of ai>|)r()i>riate names to carefully discriminated condi- 
tions of the plant, much })rogTess will be made in the 
understanding and treatment of these troubles. 

These diseases may be classed in three general divisions, 
according to their etiology. 

Diseases due to physioloyical muses. — ^losaic disease, or 
yellow leaf blight ( Fig. 7() ) ; red leaf blight, shedding of 
bolls, and angular leaf spot. 

Fniir/us diseases. — Frenching ; sore shin; damping off, or 
seedling rot ; anthracnose ( Fig. 77 ) ; root rot (Fig. 78 ) ; cot- 
ton-leaf blight ; areolate mildew ( P'ig. 7i> ) ; cotton-boll rot ; 
and ripe decay of bolls. 

. Neyncdode diseases. — Root galls ( Fig. 80 )." 

Prof. Atkinson continues his remarks by giving a very 
exhaustive description of the diseases of cotton, which can be 
referred to in Bulletin No. 33 of the United States Department 
of Agriculture, from which Figs. 76 to 98, with their explana- 
tory notes, have been reproduced. 

The question of insects which infest the cotton plant has 
been summarized by Col. A. B. Shepperson in his book on 
" C btton Facts " as under : — 

The boll-worm of cotton ( Fig. 81 ), generally called the 
boll- worm (HelirjtJiis ^[rmie/er), is a true moth, like the cotton 
caterpillar, having the four regular stages of growth, viz.: 
First, the egg ; second, the larva, or worm ; third, the chrysa- 
lis ; fourth, the moth. 

The eggs ( P^ig. 81 at 1 ) are usually deposited singly and 
have been found on all parts of the plant. They generally 
hatch in three to five days, but a longer time is taken in the 
spring and fall. 

The WT)rm ( Fig. 81 at 2, 3, 4, 5 ) is hatched and developed 
very similarly to the cotton caterpillar, but when full grown is 
somewhat larger. It feeds chiefly on tiie young forms, buds, 
flowers and bolls, into which it bores, causing their utter destruc- 



CHAP. III.] 



DAMAGE TO CKOPS. 



173 



tion. W'lieii young, the worms feed ui)Oii the ibriiis, hiids and 
small bolls, but as they grow they attack larger bolls. They 
go from bud to bud, and from boll to boll, and thus each 
worm destroys a number of them. A close observer reports 
having found eighteen young bolls, besides many unopened 




Fic. 80. Root Galls. 



buds, to have been bored into by a single half-grown l)oll 
worm. 

The chrysalis (Fig. 81 at 6) is always found a few inches 
beneath the surface of the ground. This state lasts seven to 
ten days in midsummer, and fifteen to twenty days in cooler 
weather. 



174 COTTON. [chap. III. 



DESCRIPTION OF FIG. 81. 

TRANSFORMATIONS OF COTTON BOIJ. WORM. 

( Heliothis armirtcr Iliibn.) 

Fig-. 1. Egg on under side of leaf. 

Fig. 2. Larva one-third grown boring into square. 

Fig. 3. Entrance hole of young larva in square, witli e.xerfmental pellets at edge of hole. 

Fig. 4. Nearly full grown larva just issued from boll. 

Fig. 5. Full grown larva on leaf stem. 

Fig. (i. Chrysalis or pupa sliown in center of un<lergronnd earthen cell : cell shown in 
longitudinal section. 

Fig. 7. Adult moth, light variety. 

Fig, S. Adult moth with dark forewings. 

Fig. 9. Adult moth in resting position, wings slightly elevated, hind liorder of hind 
wings slightly showing. 




Fig: 81; Traqsforii\atior]s of Cottor\ Boll Worrq: 



176 COTTON. [ciiAi>. in. 

The moth is in apj)eamnce and habits inucli like that of 
the cotton caterpiUar, but does not usually appear in cotton 
fields until July or August. ( Fig. 81 at 7, 8, {).) 

The boll worm invariably hibernates in the chrysalis state 
and under the ground. 

Many generations are produced until cokl weather. The 
first to the third ])roods generally feed in corn fields, so that 
the first brood of boll worms found on cotton plants is really 
the fourth brood. 

The natural enemies of the boll worm are birds, spiders, 
beetles, wasps, ants, domestic fowls, etc., but ants are probably 
their most active and destructive enemies. 

The worms also eat each other and a good many are 
destroyed in this way. 

The damage from l:)oll worms is greatest in the states of 
Texas, Arkansas, Mississippi and Louisiana, in the order 
named, while the injury done in other sections of the cotton 
belt is unimportant. 

Fields, and indeed large sections, are sometimes injured 
to the extent of twenty to twenty-five per cent. The maxi- 
mum annual loss to the entire crop of Texas may be estimated 
at from five to ten per cent. There can be little doubt that 
more injury is now inflicted by the boll worm than by 
caterpillars, as these latter are easily held in check by the 
intelligent use of insecticides, while from their habits the boll 
worms are not so easily destroyed. 

Preventive measures are the use of poisons, by sprinkling 
them in powdered form over the })lants. Paris green is proba- 
bly the poison most largely used. 

Fall plowing gives good results, as it u})turns and exposes 
the chrysalides, and those which are not devoured by fowls, 
etc., are killed by the cold. 

The cotton caterpillar or the cotton worm {Aldia Argil- 
laced ), is a true moth, having the four regular stages of growth, 
viz.: First, the egg; second, the larva, or worm; third, the 
chrysalis ; fourth, the moth. 



CHAP. III.] 



DAMAGE TO CKOPS. 



177 



The egos are (lei)ositetl by the moth singly, on the under 
side of the lower or larger leaves of the cotton plant ( Fig. S2 ). 
They are first deposited usually in May or in early June, and 
rareiy more than three or four to a leaf; though later in the 
season the upper surface of the leaf receives a share of eggs, 
and larger numbers are found on the leaves. The eggs are 
usually hatched in three or four days, but the time varies 




Fig. sh 
side : 
iiatu 



Cotton caterpillar : 
b, Crom above 
ral size. 



a, Crom 
— twice 





Fig. 82. Egg of cotton worm moth ; a, top 
view ; b, s-ide view — greatly enlarged. 




Fig. si. Cotton worm moth : a, with wing.s expanded 
in flight ; b, wings closeii, at rest —natural size. 



with the temperature and a longer period is required in 
the spring and fall than in summer. ^Moisture favors hatch- 
ing. Frost, as well as extreme heat, destroys the vitality of 
the eggs. 

The worm ( Fig. 83 ) molts five times, and the term of 
larval existence varies from one to three weeks. Until after 
the second molt it remains on the under side of the leaf. 



178 



COTTON. 



[ciiAr. III. 



After the third inoU it moves toward the top of the })hint, 
feeding on the tender foHagc. While preferring the leaves, it 
will eat the holls and all parts of the j)lant, even harking the 
stems. The worm does not thrive on anvthing hut tlic cotton 




Fig. 85. Proboscis of cotton worm molh —enlarged : tip 
at right still more enlarged. 




Fig. 8C. Cotton worm egg parasite {Tricliof/rmnma pre- 
tiosa) : a, adult female, greatly enlarged ; b, ovipos- 
ter ; c, female antenna ; d, male antenna, still more 
enlarged. 



plant. It moves hy its thread or weh and also springs from 
plant to plant, the maximum spring being about two feet. 

Having obtained full growth, the worm " webs up," form- 
ing a cocoon usually within the roll of a leaf, sparsely lined 



CHAP. III.] 



DAMACiK TO CUOrS. 



179 



with silken meshes. The chrysalis state lasts from about a 
week ill midsummer to three weeks in cooler weather. The 
average time is about fifteen days. The worm does not bui'row 
in the ground, and chrysalides are never found below its surface. 





Fig. 88. Skin of cotton caterpillar attached 
to the underside of the cotton leaf by silk 
Fig. 87. Chalcis flavipes, an impoTtaut \^a.va.site spun about the pupae oi Euplcdrus com- 
of the cotton caterpillar. stockii, — natural size. 




Fig. 89. Pimpla cmK/uiffitor, one of the principal parasites of the cotton 
caterpillar : a, larva, enlarged ; b, head of same, still more enlarged ; 
c, pupa; d, adult female, eularged ; e, f, end of abdomen of adult 
male, still more enlarged. 

The moth (Fig. 84) is nocturnal, and, as a rule, flies 
onl}'^ at night. During the day it flies for short distances 
when disturbed. The female begins to la}' from two to four 
days after issuing from the chrysalis, and lays an average of 



180 COTTON. [chap. III. 

four hundred eggs during the season. Its natural food is the 
juice exuding fi-om the glands upon the mid-rib of the leaf, 
and at the base of the blooms and bolls of the cotton plant ; 
but it also feeds u})on fruits of all kinds as they ripen. 

Until the worms are numerous enough to badly riddle 
the leaves, the moths continue to lay their eggs in the neigh- 
borhood of their birth, then they begin to migrate and appear 
in numbers everywhere, and at points far distant from the cot- 
ton helds. The time for migrating varies, but it is rarely 
until after the thinl generation of worms, or about July 1 in 
southern Texas and later in higher latitudes. Migrations are 
more common in the fall montlis, and tlie moths fly on cloudy 
days as well as at night. 

There has been much diversity of o})inion upon this sub- 
ject, but the investigations of the United States Entomological 
Commission seem to establish fully the fact that the Aletia 
never hibernates as egg, larva or chrysalis, l)ut survives the 
winter only in the moth state and in the southern part of the 
cotton belt, perishing in other sections with the approach of 
cold weather. The hibernating sections seem to be more in the 
southwestern than in the Atlantic states. Caterpillars are 
usually more numerous after severe and steady winters than 
after mild and changeable ones. Under the former conditions 
the moths remain torpid until early spring, but with mild 
winter weather they are aroused to activity only to perish 
from lack of nourishment at that season. The moth hiber- 
nates under the shelter of rank wire grass, under the barks 
of trees, in deca3'ed logs and in the timbers of buildings. 

The first generation appears about May 1st, in the ex- 
treme South. In Southern Texas as many as seven genera- 
tions are produced during the season. The first and second 
generations are confined to restricted areas, often not exceeding 
a few acres. The third generation becomes more widespread, 
and the moths produced from it so nnmerous that they begin 
to migrate. Tliis generation appears in Southern Texas the 



B 



?3 




^^.ssy'^ff^'ism 




1 SL' 



COTTON. 



|riiAI'. III. 



hiltiT |>;irt of .lime, ;iml in South A ImIliiiim :iiiiI ( Jcoi'^iji soiiic- 
\\li;il lattT. 'riii.sis usumII y f;ill('il tlic •• lirst lnood"' in llioso 
.sections, hut is sinipiy th(> lirst which h;is ;itl I'lictcd notice. 
The suhsc(|UtMit i^enei'Mtions hecoine, uutlei' l';i \'orin^- com lit ions, 
niore and inoic nuiiieidus, widespread and desi ruct i\'e. In 
the noilhein portion ot' tlie ('olton Kelt the nunihci- of hroods 
is less and xal'ies accordiui; to the date of the lirst appear- 
iince of the moths from furthei' south, and other eireumslnn- 
ces. 'I'liere is increasini; acti\ily in de\'elopiiient until. Inly, 
and thereal'ter deci'casini;'. In midsuniniei', iVom the Laying 
of the e^i;- to the de\'elopment of the moth takes hut three 
weeks, while eai'lier and later in the season it may hake twico 
as louL!,'. The a\'eram" time from the ci^i:,' of (»ne generation to 
that of another is ahout a iiioiilh. The worm is seldom no- 
ticed and ne\'er in i^rcat numheis until the plant he«;ins to 
bloom. 

I ,ow , ailiix ial Lands, where t he plants are lar^eand luxur- 
iant, are the earliest places \isited hy caierpillars. 'Idiis rule is 
t)f ti,('ner;d application. Moist atmosphei'e is la\'oralde and dry 
weather unfa\ oi'ahlc to their des'clopment. Warm rains cause 
them to multiply rapidly, while dry, hot wt'athcr is not only 
destruct i\ (' to worms and chi'ysalides, hut prcNcnls 1 1 u ■ ei;;ij,'s 
from lialchiui;', .\ hot, dry spell generally pnts an end to the 
eatiMpillars. 

In years of seV(MH' injury the I'rop upon some plantations 
may sutler from •_'."» pel- cent, to .almost total destruction, while 
upon other plantations tlu> loss will he trillin<;\ The greatest 
a\eram' of loss is in the more southern poilion of thehelt, 
where, tVom climatic causes, the worms appear ea ilier and de- 
vidoj* a greater nunihi-r of hroods. 

In the northern portion oi' the ('ottoii Kelt the caterpil- 
lars soinet imes appear so \:\{c that the\' di^ more j^nod than 
harm, hy remo\in^- the su|)er-al)nndant foliage, thus ad mitt inu- 
tile sun to the bolls and hastenins'' their niaturitw 







/ '''^.,^ 













184 COTTON. [tiiAi'. III. 

The natural enemies of caterpillars are domestic fowls, 
birds, s})iders, beetles, was})s, ants, etc. blackbirds, rice birds 
and ants are probably tlie most active and destructive enemies. 
Several parasites ( I'^ius. SC), S7, and SS. ) also infest the cotton 
worm. 

rreventative measures most generally a(lo})ted are the free 
use of ])oisons, by sjn'inkliuL!,' them in powdered form or s])ray- 
ing them over the })lants. Taris green is probably the poison 
most used, and has usually proved elective when applied 
properly and in time. 

Aside from the cotton worm and the boll worm, the cot- 
ton plant can not be siiid to sutler seriously from the attacks 
of insects. ( 'ut worms — Fcltia ainiexa — ( Fig. U'J ) sometimes 
damage the young i>lants in the beginning of the season ; 
plant lice occasionally cause the withering of the terminal 
leaves ( also usually eai'ly in the season ) ; there are several 
bugs which sting the young bolls, although never to any serious 
extent; grasshoppers sometimes "rag" the leaves in Texas, 
and there are several leaf-feeding caterpillars which, like the 
cotton worm mentioned above, appear later in the season, 
and in reality do little but remove the superal)un(lant foliage 
and expose the bolls to the sun, causing earlier ripening, and 
consequently a beneficial rather than an injurious effect. The 
})lague of what are called " sharp-shooters " by the planters 
is caused by a leaf ho])per — Ilonuilixllscti fixu/xldhi — (Fig. 
93), which punctures the boll. We occasionally learn of a 
case of local and temporary damage by one or another of 
several species of insects, such as the garden web-worm, Avhich 
injured young cotton growing in })roximity to garden crops 
in Texas, .Vrkansas, and Indian Territory a few years ago ; 
but tliese cases are varo, and do not deserve extended consid- 
eration. The .Vmerican locust — Scjii^l<iv< rai AiiicrinnKi — 
( Fig. 5)4 ) sometimes causes alarm among farmers. The 
cotton stalk borer ( Fig. Oo ) only attacks dead or decayed stalks. 



CIIAT. III.] 



HA MALI-: TO CKOl'S. 



185 




Fi<;. 92. Fitiin minc.m: a, larvii ; f, piijia ; h, moll) ■ 
natural size. ( After Riley. ) 




Fk;. 93. Homnloflisca coaf/iilntn : a, adult female seen from 
above ; b, same, side view ; c, venation of forewing, en- 
larged ; d, antenna; e, .section of hind tibia; f, female 
genitalia, still more enlarged ; g, serrations of ovipositor, 
still more enlarged. ( From Insect Life.) 



186 



COTTUX. 



[CHAI-. III. 



A serious exce})ti()n to this general statement may in^the 
future be ibund in ^iiifhoiioiiiii>i f/rdndis (Figs. 06, 97 and i)S), 
a Mexican weevil wliicli danuiges cotton l)olls. This insect, 




Fic;. 94. Sclilstncrrca americana : adult female — natural size. 
( From Insect Life.) 





Fig '.15. Cotton stalk borer ( AUt.cia cri/pla ) : a, larva from above ; b, larva from 
side; c, tunneled cotton stalk showing ixil hole; d, adult beetle — all en- 
larged except c (original ). 

down to the close of the season of 1S94, was known only 
through a few specimens collected upon cotton bolls in Mexico 
some ten years since by Dr. Edward Palmer. During 1894, 



LIIAl". III.] 



dama(;k to cKors. 



187 



however, it was learned that the species had made its appear- 
ance in tlie state of Texas. It works in a peculiarly injurious 
manner, utterly destroying many hoUs. The life history of 




Fig. 96. The cotton boll \\vc\i\ ( Antlionomvs c/ra]i(U'!t) : a, adult 
beetle : b, pupa; e, larva — enlarged. ( From Insect Life). 




Fk;, 97. The cotton boll weevil : a, newly hatcheil 
larva in younsf square ; b, nearly full-grown larva 
in situ : c, pupa in young boll picked from ground. 

the species was carefully investigated during ISOo, and Dr. 
L. 0. Howard has published two circulars of information, 
which have been widely distributed among cotton planters. 



iss 



COTTON. 



[('IIAI'. III. 



After this brief .summary it will be evident tliat the .sul)- 
ject of insects injurious to cotton in the United States can ])e 
classed luider four main headino-s — (1) the cotton worm, 
( 2 ) the boll worm, (3) the Mexican cotton l)oll weevil, and 
(4) other cotton insects. (Bulletin ;>:>, United States Depart- 
ment of Agriculture.) 

Cultivation of Sea Island Cotton. While the foregoing- 
part of this chapter may be considered an accurate description 
of the cultivation of what is ordinarily known as American 
cotton, something should be said on the special methods 
adopted in the cultivation of Sea Island cottons. I am 




Fig. 98. Mftture T)oll cut open at left, showing full-grown larva; the one at 
the right not cnt,an(l showing feeding pnuctures and oviposition marks. 



indebted to an article in the South Carolina Hand-l)ook, and 
to Mr. H. Hammond, for much of the following information, 
The Sea Island cotton plant has a larger and more vigorous 
growth than the Upland plant. It withstands the vicissitudes 
of the heat and cold better, and it is less subject to disease ; so 
called blight and rust do not atfect it as readily as they do the 
Upland cotton, nor does it shed its forms and bolls to anything 
like the same extent. These remarks as to rust aj)ply also to 
those varieties of Uplands in which the length of tlie stajjle 
has been improved by selection of the seed, and rows of this 



CHAP. Ill ] cri/rivATiox OF ska island cotton. IS!) 

are oftcMi seen healthy and vigorous, while the short staple 
Uplands around are withered with the rust. The early growth 
of the Sea Island is so vigorous, that it maintains itself in 
fields infested with Bemuida and nut grass, as the Uplands 
could not. The lea\es are larger, smootlier, and of a 
l)righter green than U})lands, and the tiowers are larger, 
handsomer, and of a more golden yellow. But tlie holls 
are smaller, and instead of being five-lobed are usually only 
threedobed — these lobes being so sharp pointed as to prick 
the fingers, to the serious inconvenience of pickers not 
accustomed to gather Sea Island cotton. Of course the small 
size of the l)olls requiring so many to make a })0und, adds 
much to the expense of harvesting tlie crop. 

On the Sea Islands of Carolina, field labor is })erformed 
almost exclusively by negroes. Nearly all of them are engaged 
in farming on their own account ; a large number own farms ; 
a still larger number rent land for cultivation, and even the 
laborers are paid most generally by granting them the use of 
so many acres of land for certain stipulated services. The 
total number of farms on the islands is stated to be fifty- 
four hundred and fifty-three, but tlie number probably exceeds 
six thousand, the enumerators having had the lands and crops 
cultivated by renters returned by the landowner, and consoli- 
dating them as being in some way under one management, 
when they were, in reality, entirely independent — an error 
ever likely to occur, and sometimes quite difficult to avoid, 
and which has no doubt caused the number of farms to be 
underestimated and their size overestimated in many sections of 
the South. The lai'gest nnml)er of acres of Sea Island cotton 
planted under one management nowhere exceeds one hundred 
acres. The white planters do not probably average more than 
tlnrty acres, and this necessitates that they should l)e land- 
lords of considerable estate. For as the laborers are frequently 
given five to seven acres for two days' work in the week, and 
as this two days' work per week does not suffice for the 



IDO COTTON. [chap. hi. 

cnltivatioii of more than four acres, to cultivate tliirty acres 
of cotton under this system recjuires seventy-five acres of land ; 
add to this the amount usually planted in corn and other 
crops, and we will have one hundred and twenty acres. As 
under the best system the land lies fallow every other year, 
the planter of thirty acres of cotton will require two hundred 
and forty acres of open land ; and as scarcely one-fifth of the 
land is under cultivation, sucli a }>lanter will prol)ably own 
some twelve hundred acres. Thus there is no proportion 
between the size of the farm actually cultivated and the land 
holding — the first being finite small and the last large. 
This state of things is owing to absence of capital and the low 
price of land and labor. Lands whicli were worth fifty dol- 
lars to sixty dollars an acre more than half a centur}^ ago, 
and which had increased in value down to 18(30, being until 
recently either wholly unsalealjle or selling at ten dollars per 
acre or less. 

On James Island, which at this time is perhaps nnder a 
more progressive system of culture than the other sea islands, 
laborers are paid cash for their work, at the rate of fifty cents 
per diem and ten dollars per month, with board — the latter 
being a ration of three pounds of bacon and one peck of grist 
a week, with shelter and fuel. The soil and the condition of 
the laborers are reported as improving, and cash wages are con- 
sidered preferable to the share, or the land, system of pay- 
ment. Arable land rents here at two dollars an acre per 
annum. The })rice of land is from fifteen dollars to thirty 
dollai's ail acre. A few laborers own their own houses, but 
very few own any farming land. 

On .John Island, cash wages are from eight dohars to 
ten dollars a month, with l)oard. Most of the laborers, how- 
ever, are engaged for two days' work a week by allowing them 
a house, fuel, and six or seven acres of land free of rent. The 
report is that the system is not satisfactory. The lands worked 
by the landlords are improving ; that worked by the laborers 



(•ii.U>. III.] CULTJ NATION OF SEA ISLAND COTTON. 101 

on their own account is deteriorating rapidly. The labor is 
not so easily controlled as when cash wages are paid. The 
lands vary greatly in price — prices ranging from two dollars 
and fifty cents to twenty dollars per acre, with some lands 
valued recently still higher. Jient is higher than on James 
Island, in consequence of a system that increases the demand 
by multiplying small farmers, and it is about three dollars 
per acre })er annum. 

On Edisto Island, the two days' system prevails. The 
average yield of cotton on Edisto Island is a bale to 2.6 acres ; 
for the six largest planters it is a bale to 1.7 acres. Consider- 
ing the quality of the staple produced, it may be safely said 
that the larger farms yielded between two and three times as 
much as the small ones. Lands here are worth from ten dol- 
lars to twenty-five dollars per acre — formerly they were 
worth from fifty dollars to seventy dollars per acre. Small 
tracts rent for about four dollars per acre per annum, larger 
tracts for less. This state of things tends to reduce the sale- 
able value of lands, while it increases their rental value. 

A mule can do the plowing required in the cultivation of 
thirty acres in Sea Island cotton, and can, in addition, culti- 
vate a sufficiency of land to supply corn for its own feed, per- 
ha})S something over. The first step in the ])reparation of the 
land is to hoe off the weeds ( " hurricane " ), cut up the cotton 
stalks, and [)ile and burn this litter. This costs forty cents 
l)er acre. Bushes are grubbed up at a cost of seven cents 
per acre. The land is not broken up broadcast with the plow, 
but early in February two furrows of a single-horse turning 
})low are run in the old alleys, making a trench seven or eight 
inches deej). In this furrow a subsoil plow mav or may not 
be run, according to the character of the subsoil. Wherever 
under-drainage is ])ractised, as on James Island, the furrow is 
generally used. P)efore plows came into use this trench was 
never made, and even now it is omitted by some of the most 
successful planters. Into this trench, or into the middle of the 



1-^'-^ COTTON. [en A I', in. 

alley, whcro there is no trench, the manure is ])laee(l. Tliis 
consists usually of about twenty cart loads of marsh mud and 
one thousand to one thousand four hundred pounds of cotton 
seed. Stable and lot manure, togetlier with composts of 
marsh mud and rushes, are also a})plied in the furrow at the 
rate of forty cart loads per acre on such a portion of the land 
as the limited number of stock enables the farmer to treat in 
this method. ( )n the lines of manure thus laid down, a cer- 
tain quantity of commercial fertilizer is drilled. This prac- 
tice, wholly unknown formerly, is ver}^ common now, even 
the smallest negro farmers often going heavily in debt to 
obtain these fertilizers from the store-keepers. They are 
handy, obviate the labor and care of stock, and the fore- 
thought and toil of collecting and manipulating composts. 
On James Island and John Island a mixture consisting of 
two hundred and fifty pounds of acid j^hosphate, two hundred 
pounds kainit ( German potash salt) and two hundred pounds 
calcined marl is applied per acre. On Edisto Island are used 
two hundred pounds iish scrap ( half dry in Ijarrels ), two 
hundred pounds kainit and two hundred pounds acid phos- 
phate per acre. On St. Helena Island little fertilizer is used. 
Cotton seed is worth fifteen dollars to twenty dollars per ton, 
and the commercial fertilizers from fifteen dollars to thirty 
dollars, which would make fifteen dollars an acre the cost of 
the manure among the best farmers. 

The land is now ready for listing, which is done b}^ haul- 
ing on to the manure with a hoe the soil from the tops and 
sides of the old beds. A more recent practice is to lap in with 
two furrows of a turning plow on the manure. This costs only 
seventeen and one-half cents })er acre, while the listing with 
the hoe costs eighty cents, although the latter has the great 
advantage of bringing all the vegetable mould and humus 
directly to the s})ot where the roots of the plant are to grow. 
Over the mass of dirt, weeds, manure, etc., thus collected in 
the old alley, a double roller, five feet from center to center, 



CHAP, in.] cr [/IIV.VTIOX OF SKA ISLAND COTTON. 



li»:; 




194 COTTON. [cilAP. III. 

aud weighing about eight liundred pounds, is passed to"})ress 
together and compact the whole, completing two rows at a 
time. All this should be completed by the first to the middle 
of March, and the bed is then built np 1)}' lapping in two more 
furrows on a side, with a single or double horse turning plow. 

The land is now ready for planting, which may begin 
any time after the twentieth of March ; but the first to the 
tenth of April is the time preferred. Cotton planters are not 
used. Three hands do this work ; the one ahead cho})S a hole 
with a hoe on the top of the bed at intervals of twelve to 
eighteen inclies ; another hand drops eight or ten seeds into 
each hole, and the third follows and covers carefully with the 
hoe. Three or four pecks of seed are used to the acre. The 
seed makes its appearance above ground in eight to twelve 
days after being planted, and the stand is perfected from 
the second week in April to the first week in May. Hoeing 
begins about the first of ^lay. The second hoeing takes place 
the last of May. The plows then break out the middles (the 
spaces between the new beds where the old beds stood ). The 
hoe hands follow and pull up the loose dirt left by the ])lowto 
the foot of the cotton. This is called hauling ; by it the new 
bed is completed, the cotton is ke|)t from "flagging" (falling- 
down ), and the grass is kept under. It costs eighty cents per 
acre. At the second hoeing some stalks are thinned from the 
bunch in which the seed breaks the ground, and at each suc- 
ceeding hoeing and hauling other stalks are removed, until in 
July only one stalk of each bunch is left. There are four 
hoeings and four haulings by the last week in July, one or 
more furrows with a sweep plow Ijeing run through the mid- 
dles previous to each hauling. By the last of July the culture 
is completed, except to run a furrow witli tlie sweep l)etween 
the rows in August, to destroy grass and keep the cotton 
growing. 

The first blo.ssoms appear about the middle of June, when 
the cotton is fifteen inches high, and the bolls open towards 



CHAP, in.] f'ULTIVATIOX OF SEA ISLAND COTTON. 195 

the end of August, when the })lants have attained a growth of 
four to five feet. ( 'otton ])icking commences from the hist 
week in August to the second week in September. For the 
first picking, while the cotton is thin, one and a half cents per 
pound seed cotton is paid. Sul)sequently the price is one 
cent per pound, never less, until the last of November, when 
it rises again to one and a half to two cents. , By the fifteenth 
of December the crop is gathered. 

When the cotton has been picked, weighed and housed, it 
is next S})read out in the sun, on what is called " an arbor." 
This is a platform usually made of inch boards, raised a few 
feet above the ground, and some twenty-five feet or more 
square. Here the sun and air dry the cotton, preventing it 
from heating, which it is liable to do wdien stored in bulk, and 
it is also thought to cause the lint to absorb some of the oil 
in the seed, which adds to the silky lustre of the fibre. After 
being thus dried, it may be either stored or passed at once to 
the " whipper," a machine that knocks out the dust and sand, 
and leaves the cotton whiter and more open. Formerly, when 
the price was higher than it is at jiresent, it was all assorted. 
A hand was given one hundred and fifty pounds of seed cotton 
as a day's task, which he thoroughly overhauled, picked out 
all specks, stained cotton, fragments of leaf, etc. At present, 
however, this is usually done by two hands, wdio examine 
the cotton as it passes into the gin, and two others behind 
the gin, who pick out cracked seed and motes, as the lint 
issues from the gin. The roller gin in some form has always 
been used for detaching the lint from black seed cotton. The 
first roller gin used in this country was one constructed in 
1788, by Afr. Bissell, of (leorgia. It consisted of two short 
wooden rollers moving in o})})osite directions, each turned by 
a boy or girl, and giving, as the result of a day's work, five 
pounds of lint cotton. To this succeeded the foot or treadle 
gins, imported from the West Indies, wdiere they had been in 
use, having reached there with this varietv of cotton seed. 



IOC) COTTON. [chap. III. 

Other inn)r()veim'nts took place in the roller ^iii, iVoiii time to 
time, and about 1840, F. McCarthy, of Alabama, devised a 
machine which bears his name, and has been in use ever since 
on the Sea Islands. Shortly after this, small steam engines 
were used with the McCarthy gin, and now oxen and horses 
have been discarded and all the gins on the Sea Islands are 
run by steam power. Two horse power is required for each 
gin, which turns out on an average, a bale weighing three 
hundred and fifty pounds as a day's work. There is a recent 
English improvement of the McCarthy gin, known on the Sea 
Islands as the double McCarthy. This gin gives two bales in 
a day's work ; but it requires greater skill to attend it. 

The usual charge at these gins is three and a half to four 
cents per pound of lint, and they are said to pay well. Tlie 
cotton is packed in Dundee bagging, in round bales. No 
press is used, as it is thought it would injure the fibre. The 
work is done by hand, the cotton being beaten into the bag 
with a pestle. At the large gin house on St. Helena, however, 
even this work is accomplished l)y machinery. The l)ag is con- 
veniently suspended from an iron hoop, and a disc of two-inch 
plank, exactly fitting the bag, and moved by steam, pushes the 
cotton in, securing greater dispatch and accuracy in the 
packing. 

What has been written refers distinctly to the Sea 
Islands. A considerable quantity of long staple cotton in 
addition is grown on the mainlands and is known as Floridas, 
Santees, and as Mains. The general economy of the culture 
is the same as on the Sea Islands. The seed is obtained 
annually or biennially from the islands, as it is thought to 
deteriorate very rapidly on the mainland. In the absence of 
determinate experiments for a series of years, it is not easy to 
say what the cause of this deterioration is, or even if it is due 
to causes of a permanent character. That the seed does 
deteriorate is a fact beyond question. 



CIIAI". III.] (TI/nVATIOX Ol'^ SKA ISLAND COTTON. 197 

The cost of production may be considered from two points 
of view. First, the actual cost to certain producers, of whom 
inquiry has been made. Second, what may be termed the 
rational cost, that is, the ]a])or, material and ca})ital, neces- 
sarily expended in production, directly or indirectly, by the 
producer himself, or by some one else. The first is real, but 
by no means expresses everything involved. For instance, on 
unsaleable land, a landholder, with little or no expenditure of 
capital, ma}^ produce a certain amount of cotton with labor 
given in return for debts that could not be otherwise collected. 
Such cotton would cost almost nothing to the producer. 
Between this and the opposite extreme, where the land had 
been bought above its real value, and a large expenditure 
made in the culture, there is every variation of individual 
experience — from one of immense profits to one ending 
directly in baidcruptcy. The rational cost, on the other hand, 
is purely tlieoretical ; in estimating the cost of each item of 
expenditure, it must be generalized and reduced to an average 
that does not, perhaps, conform exactl}^ to the experience of 
any individual. It summarizes these items, and leaves them 
recorded for consideration. Both methods are given. Messrs. 
Hinson & Rivers, on James Island, say eighty dollars a bale of 
four hundred pounds, or twenty cents per ])ound. Dr. A. B. 
Ivose, of (Tiarleston, })uts the cost at seventy dollars an acre, 
wliich should yield a bale of o")0 pounds, which gives, like- 
wise, twenty cents per pound. One of the most, if not the 
most, successful among Sea Island planters, Mr. J. J. Mikell, 
of Edisto, says the cost is fifteen cents per pound there. 

Before considering the rational cost, a word should be said 
as to the amount of production. The highest yield on record 
to one acre is 566 pounds of lint, on a single acre on Mr. 
Schaffer's place, on Wadmalaw Island. A planter on John 
Island made an average of 290 pounds of lint per acre, on a 
tract of twenty acres, while small farmers in the same locality 
produced only fifty pounds to seventy-five pounds lint per 



11)8 



COTTON. 



[chap. III. 



acre. On Edisto Island, there is a tract ol' 100 acres, pro- 
ducing 210 pounds of lint per acre, and conservative farmers 
there consider that 200 pounds of lint on the larger farms, 
year in and year out, to be an average yield of fine staple. In 
Mills' statistics of Soutli Carolina, published in 1.S25, it is 
stated that a farmer on Edisto Island produced on an ex- 
tensive scale, an average of 270 |)ounds of clean cotton to 
the acre. He also states that there were lots of lands that 
had produced 43.") pounds of lint to the acre. From which it 
would a})pear that the soil, climate, and old methods of cul- 
ture had a capacity not very far inferior to that witli which 
the invention of fertilizers, and of improved implements and 
methods at the present time, endow this locality. 



SEA ISLAND COTTON CROPS, EXPORTS AND UNITED STATES 

CONSUMPTION. ( SlIEPPERSON.) 



Season . 



1874-75. 

1875-7(). 
1876-77. 
1877-78. 
1878-79. 
1879-80. 
1880-81. 
1881-82. 
1882-83. 
1883-84. 
1884-85. 
]885-8(). 
]88(i-87. 
1887-88 . 
1888-89. 
1889-90. 
1890-91. 
1891-92. 
1892-93. 
1893-94. 
1894-95. 
1895-96. 
1896-97 . 



8,139 
7,598 
10,832 
11,675 
10,214 
11,300 
16,9.50 
20,992 
16,898 
16,762 
23,526 
23,-501 
29,991 
22,614 
22.471 
23,918 
22,214 
17,059 
9,882 
19,107 
15,031 
20,771 
26,219 



1,074 
' 2,121 

2,558 

3,556 

2,052 

3,420 

3,179 

6,049 

3,126 

1 ,399 

4,327 

5,780 

6,411 

8,.304 

12,000 

13,629 

29,613 

30,576 

28,324 

39,.367 

53,703 

61.312 

65,040 



^ 


6 








.s 


■s 




2'i 


o| 


Id 


O 

o 


ft 

p 


l« 


il 


5" 


aj 


OS 




>< 


3 

o 




o 


W o 


W CD 


03 


H 


H 


'^ 


- 


7,308 


166 


16,687 


13,139 


1,907 


4,722 


74 


14,515 


11,591 


1,345 


4,933 


29 


18,352 


11,865 


1,369 


6,249 


30 


21,510 


12,594 


3,701 


7,133 


202 


19,<)01 


10,456 


2 242 


10,142 




24,862 


13,729 


3^294 


14,868 


24 


35,021 


20,259 


4,136 


10,796 


25 


37.862 


22,303 


2,453 


16,591 


94 


36,709 


21,565 


1,892 


7,329 




25,490 


12,166 


1,413 


12,588 


11 


40,452 


18,422 


3,143 


8,497 




37,778 


14,748 


1,680 


8,735 




45,137 


25,216 


1 ,435 


8,561 




39,479 


18,698 


1,915 


9,618 




44,089 


21,515 


1,811 


9,256 




46.803 


25,991 


2,251 


16,30() 




68,133 


34,300 


4,823 


11,499 




59,1.34 


24,778 


2.653 


7,212 




45,418 


20,650 


i;s9o 


2,578 




61,0.52 


33,385 


4,6:!(; 


5,894 




74,628 


35,033 


5,711 


9,971 


991 


93,045 


43,174 


7,269 


10,701 


2,597 


104,557 


47,272 


11,180 



Ha3 



2,192 

1,915 

4,0()8 

6,451 

(5,688 

9,389 

11,270 

14,762 

13,573 

11,674 

17,358 

19,973 

20,515 

19.560 

20,i;;2 

19,124 

26,602 

32,279 

22,927 

23^51 6 

34,765 

40,092 

41,676 



CiiAi-. MI.] CULTIVATION OF SEA ISLAND COTTON. 



I'M 



COST Ol' KACPI ITEM OF LAI5011 AND MATERIAL EXPENDED IN 
THE CULTURE OF AN ACRE OF SEA ISLAND COTTON. 



Items. 



Rent or interest on money in- 
vested in lands 

Wear and tear of implements. . . 

Cleaning and burning weeds and 
stalks 

Other cleaning up 

Digging and carting salt mud. . . 

Spreading salt mud 

Cotton seed for manure, 20 bush., 
at30 cts .■••:• 

Lapping mud and seed in with 
two furrows, or rolling ditto. ■ . 

Fish scrap, 200 lbs., and spread 
ing, 15 cts 

Kainit, 200 lbs 

Acid Phosphate, 200 lbs 

Spreading last two, 15 cts. each . . 

Commercial manures 

Home-made manures. 

Applying manures 

Bedding up with plow 

Splitting middles 

Breaking out ridge of old bed. . . . 

Planting 

Replanting 

Seed 

Eight to ten hoeingsand haulings 

Blowings with sweeji plow 

Thinning and regulating stand. . . 

Cleaning ditches 

Picking cotton 

Sunning and drying cotton 

Ginning, cleaning and packing. . 

Bagging and twine, per bale 

Hauling to gin 

Hauling to steamboat and freight 
to city 

Storage, insurance, weighing, 
drayage and selling 

Foreman's wages and rations. . . . 

Total 



One. 



5 00 

I 00 

40 
07 

1 00 

80 

() 00 

12^ 

2 65 

1 50 

2 00 
80 



12.1 
45 
20 
30 

5 60 
25 
12.1 
10 

8 00 
15 

;] 00 



50 

2 50 
2 75 



Two. 



Three. 



5 00 

1 00 

40 
07 



12.\ 



6 50 

7 25 

1 45 
40 
25 
12.^ 
50 
25 
30 

5 60 
25 
12.^ 
10 

8 00 
15 

8 00 
55 
40 

50 

2 50 

1 50 



45 69.V 51 29i 



5 00 
1 00 

40 
07 



Four. 



() 50 

7 25 

1 45 
40 
25 
12i 
50 
25 
30 

5 60 
25 
12.1 
10 

8 00 

7 00 
55 
40 

50 

2 50 



Five. 



48 52 



3 00 



25 



15 



10 00 
2 00 

55 
50 
50 

50 
25 

1 50 
6 00 

2 50 
50 

11 20 



00 

50 

50 

2 50 



52 



c. 

3 00 



30 
25 



2 50 
50 
10 
50 
50 

50 
25 

40 
(i 00 

2 50 
50 

4 00 

3 50 
27 
25 



1 25 



27 32 



200 



COTTON. 



[ciIAl'. III. 



The previous table presents the rutioiial cost, giving an 
itemized account of all expenditures, as reported by intelligent 
Sea Island })lanters. The first three columns aiv from Edisto, 
the yield being placed at "200 pounds of lint cotton to the 
acre. Number four is from James Island, the yield taken at 
280 pounds of lint per acre. Number five represents the aver- 
age expenditures of the hotter class of small farmers on John 
Island. 

It would be a still more difficult })roblem to arrive at a 
satisfactory estimate of the profit per acre to the farmer. 
This would vary, in the first place, according to the grade of 
cotton produced, the prices fiuctuating with the fineness of the 
staple, from thirty cents all the way up to one dollar and ten 
cents per pound. The value of the cotton, too, would depend 
greatly on the handling of the crop, whether it was picked in 
time, properly stored, sunned, dried, ginned, and moted, — in 
all of which operations the skill, care and forethought of the 
farmer would count for a great deal. But if we place the price 
of cotton at forty cents per pound, we may offer the following 
estimates as coming somewhere near the correct deductions to 
be made from the data fui'nished by the foregoing figures : 

COST OF SEA ISLAND COTTON I'EK POUND AND PROFIT PER ACRE. 



- 


One. 


Two. 


Three. 


Four. 


Five. 


Cost per pound. 


22 8-lOc. 


25,^. 


24^ c. 


18 o-5c. 


27 8-lOc. 






Do. pins value of seed | 
produced and less in- V 
terest on investment, J 


17 9-lOc. 


20 7-lOc. 


19 3- 10c. 


15 1-1 Oc. 


21^0. . 


Profit per cultivated acre. 


145 20 


138 20 


$41 40 


$69 72 


$78 25 



These figures can, of course, only be approximately cor- 
rect, but the wide difference that prevails between large farms 



CHAP. III.] 



CULTIVATION OF SP:A ISLAND COTTON. 



201 



and high culture, and the small forms and insufficient cul- 
ture, is a hopeful indication that the efforts for improvement 
have met with success, a success that would l)e much enhanced 
if we estimate the improved value of soil itself, where high 
culture has been practised. 



I:.-- 







202 COT'I'OX. [CIIAP. IV, 



CIIAI'TI'IJ IV. 

I'KKI'AI.'ATION (iK COTTON KoK 'llll'; MAIJKKT. (iINMN(; AND 

liALINc;.- — IWKNTION Ol' Tlir: SAW (UN. — oi.I>-TlMh; (ilNNlNO. 
OLD-TIMI'. 1!.\I.1N(1. MolH'.lv'N (ilNNINO. Tl I !•: SAW (UN. 

COTTON (;iNNKiiii':s. — rill'; moi)i;i!N (UNNkhy. — 'I'lii', i;oi,i,kk cin. 

rKIH'KNTAOK OK LINT. IIALINO. 

Ginning and Baling;, rx't'orc llic rnrnicr (lisposcs of his 
cotton, Ol' r;illi('r bel'oi'o lie is willing- t(» (lis|>os(' of it, it has 
to ho |)iit in niarkotiihlo shajic in i\\v I'onn of a hah', and prior 
to liahnj;- lias to l)o i;,'inn(Mh 'hho seed cotton as it is picked 
contains two-thirds of its weight in seeds. Eacli holl contains 
thii'ty or I'oi'ty seeds, and the cotton is attacluMJ to these hy 
one end of each lihi'c. jnst as the human hair is attached to 
tht' hea(h To renio\'e the lihre from the see(h tlie gin used in 
Aniei'ica, t'xcept for Sea Island cotton, is o-onerally of the 
varit'ty known as the saw gin, and after the lint has heeu 
removed, it is haled in haling presses. 

Invention of the Saw Gin. 'To thoronghly understand 
the process in use at the j)resent day, one nnist study the his- 
tory of ginnino'. 

( )n the 1 1th day ni' Nhirt-li, 17!»t, a patent was issued to 
I'di \\ hitnev, a nati\'e of .\hissachusetts, then li\uni;- in (!eor- 
gia, hy (ieorge W^isliingto)!, President of the I'liited States, 
for a cotton gin. ( )n the TJth day of May, ITtM), anothei" 
jiatent for an impro\-ement in cotton gins was issued to I logden 
Jlolmes, of l*'airtield County, South Carolina. The State of 
South ('arolina recogni/ed I'^li W hitnev as the inventor of the 
gin, and hy an act of the legislature lilty thousand dollars 
wei'e i)aid to him for the I'wv use of his invention in South 
Carolina. NoiHi (arolina imposed a royalty of <)'i3, cents per 
saw on each ain used in the state, which amount was faith- 



CH.M'. IV.] INVENTION OF THE SAW GIN. 203 

fully collected and paid, 'rciinessee also paid .soinothiiiti; to 
Whitney. 

In the State of (Jcor<;ia, where ^\'hitney worke<l, he re- 
ceived no eomi)ensation as the inventor of the oii^ it l)eing 
alleged that Joseph Watkins, a })lanter of large means and in- 
fluence, had devised the same machine for separating tlie seed 
and lint of upland cotton, and that Wliitney had visited Mr. 
Watkins and seen his machine in successful operation hefore 
he had produced one of his own. 

It is prol)al)le that the main idea on wliich the design of 
the cotton gin is founded was original with Josejih Watkins, 
hut it is also probalde that the same idea was equally original 
with Eli Whitney. Both of these men drove s))ikes made 
from wire into wooden cylinders, and while this })lan was the 
best known at the time, it remained for Hogden Holmes to 
cut a saw from a sheet of metal, and dispense altogether with 
the wooden cylinder and spikes. 

AVhile Watkins, Whitney, and Holmes, all undouljtedly 
did original and valuable work in designing and experiment- 
ing on mechanical means of separating lint from the seed of 
cotton in the perfected cotton gin, the best ideas of them all 
are incorporated in tlie present day gin, and this })erfected 
machine was more due to the energy of Eli Whitney than 
anybody else. Therefore, the South Carolina Legislature de- 
cided that if any one man conld l)e considered the inventor 
j\lr. Whitney was the man, and he was accordingly recognized 
and paiil as aljove stated for its fi-ee nse in that state. 

Old-time Ginning and Baling. We find many evidences 
of the fact that in the early days of the re})nblie the peo})le of 
the South were as full of enterprise and resoui-ces as the peo- 
ple of any part of the Union. The design of a plantation gin 
house, while a crude piece of work, in the light of our knowl- 
edge of machinery at the present time, yet considering the 
facilities, — materials and conditions then existing, — it is 
doubtful if any engineer of tlie i)resent day could suggest how 
it could have been imi)roved. 



204 COTTON. [('iiAi'. IV. 

^^onle of these conditions may be enumerated as follows : 
Cotton was })icked (harvested ) in the fall and early win- 
ter. On rainy days ]io picking could be done because firstly, 
cotton i)icked and stored when wet was sure to rot, and sec- 
ondly, it exposed the negroes to the danger of sickness, and 
leaving the humane view of the matter out of the question, 
they were too valuable })roperty to be thus exposed. During 
the fall and winter months, the difficulty of the planter was 
not scarcity of labor, but rather scarcity of suitable work for 
the negroes, w^ork where they would not be too much exposed 
to inclement wintry weather. Therefore, in considering the 
question of ginning, economy of labor did not enter. 

For power the most suitable was mule or horse. On a 
plantation it was necessary to keep, for producing the crop, 
more mules and horses than were necessary to gin the cotton 
produced. As in winter, and especially in bad weather, the 
negroes had little to do, so also was there little for the stock to 
do. There were few machine sho])S or foundries in the coun- 
try, but every well-regulated plantation boasted a carpenter 
and blacksmith amongst the slaves. Fourteen hands were 
commonl}'- required to gin cotton on a plantation, including 
baling. Of course this number could be reduced without 
affecting the amount of work done, as i)reviously explained. 

The illustration at Fig. 100 shows the most common type 
of old plantation gin house and screw, the one which was 
standard throughout the South for nearly a century, and which 
is yet by no means entirely abandoned, though the modern 
engineer has lately made war on it and it is rapidly giving 
way before the progress of steam and iron in the " New South." 

The illustration named shows the screw for packing the 
ginned or lint cotton into bales, but this feature did not come 
so quickly after the invention of the gin as the gin house. 
The earlier gin houses had a hole about three or four feet in 
diameter cut through the floor in a suitable place. A large 
bag of about the same diameter as the hole and about seven 



CHAP. IV.] 



OLD-TIME GINNING ANT) BALING 



205 



B 




206 COTTON. [chap. IV. 

feet long, was suspended in this hole in such a manner that it 
could be conveniently packed full of lint cotton. When tilled 
it was cut loose from the supports and allowed to fall. The 
top was sewed up and it was then ready for the market. At 
a later period the screw was introduced for packing lint cotton 
into bales that were at the same time much more compact and 
of much better shape than the bags. 

The size, shape and weight of these bales were also deter- 
mined by surrounding conditions and circumstances. Much 
of the cotton raised on the plantations had to be hauled to 
distant markets. Bales of such size that four of them would 
fit into an ordinary wagon body were most suited to long- 
trips on rough roads. When it was desired to haul more than 
this, four could be placed cross-wise, then four on top of these, 
and others still above, making ultimately a load of ten bales, 
weighing four or five hundred |>ounds eacli, which was con- 
sidered a maximum load to be drawn by six mules over the 
ordinary roads of the South in winter weather. These bales 
were l:)ound together, and to the wagon by a pole placed 
lengthwise on top, the ends being drawn down, front and back, 
by ropes reaching to the axles of the wagon. Topmost of all 
was an arched frame made of bent wood, covered with canvas, 
under which corn and fodder for the mules, and some bacon, 
bread, a few eggs and a frying pan, were stored for the require- 
ments of the tri|). Much cotton was hauled in loads as 
described from a distance of fifty, and even one hundred and 
fifty miles. l^'om the large plantations from two to three 
such loads would be sent together. 

A gin house was designed, in which l)y means of mule 
power applied to wooden levers, a vertical wooden shaft was 
turned, on which was a wooden cog wheel, the teeth of which 
engaged with " wallowers " or "wobblers" on a horizontal 
shaft. The latter canied a jmlley, from which the gin was 
operated by a belt. 



CHAP. IV.] OLD-TIMK GINNING AND P.ALING. 



207 






H 

XT 




208 COTTON. [CHAI'. IV. 

The screw, shown in Fi^. 101, which, witli Fig. 102, is 
inserted by courtesy of the New England Cotton ^Nlanufac- 
turers' Association, was simply a large wooden screw, working 
in a wooden nut, supported 1)y a frame, in which the box 
for receiving cotton was also built. The screw was operated 
also by mule power applied to long levers fastened to it 
at the to}). 

All seed cotton was handled by liand, the lint was carried 
to the screw in baskets, and, all in all, more hands were 
required to keep one gin going, to gin three or four bales a 
day, than are now recpired to operate six gins and gin sixty 
bales in the same time. But the planter cared nothing for 
more improved methods ; in the winter, proper work for slaves 
was scarce, and on cold or rainy days, when asked by a hand 
what to do, it was easy to answer " go help about the gin 
house," 

For the purpose of ginning and packing cotton with the 
above appliances and facilities, there were required four mules 
to operate the gin, two at each lever under the gin house, with 
a driver to each pair. In the story above there was required a 
ginner to stand at the gin and feed the cotton into it properly ; 
a ginner's helper to supply the cotton from the pile to the gin ; 
a helper to push the lint cottoii as it accumulated in a small 
room behind the gin down into the lint room, and a hand to 
remove the seed from the foot of the gin. 

For l)aling the cotton, one mule was reciuired to })ull the 
lever of the screw. The labor required was two to four hands 
to "tote cotton" (carry cotton from the lint room to the 
screw ) ; two hands in the box to pack the cotton down to 
make the box hold a bale ; two to tie the bales with hemp or 
other rope, and one or two extra hands for sewing up ends of 
bales, driving the mule at the lever, and so on. 

From the time of the invention of the gin to the end of 
the late civil war there was no demand for other methods 
than those above described. Steam would have brought 



210 COTTON. [chap. IV. 

responsibility, with no commensurate advantages from the 
planter's point of view. The boiler might explode, and if it 
did, the smallest part of the loss would be that of the engine 
and the boiler. Twenty thousand dollars' worth of negroes 
might be killed, and perhaps many scalded and otherwise 
injured, which would make large doctor's bills. 

Old-Time Baling. The bale of cotton as made in the 
ordinary plantation "screw" (press) was about five and a 
half feet long by thirty inches wide and twenty-four inches 
thick. It was covered ahnost entirely by jute or gunn}'- bag- 
ging, and bound round in five or six places with hemp ropes 
securely tied. 

Fig. 103 shows admirably all tlie plantation work neces- 
sary for the preparation of cotton for the market. On the left 
is the gin house, with an ox wagon loaded with cotton on the 
seed just brought to be ginned ; in the centre of the group is 
seen the screw press, with a mule turning it l)y means of a 
chain attached to one of the long sweeps, while a mule wagon 
is laden with bales loosely pressed and covered with bagging- 
ready for the trip to market ; the typical grove of shade trees 
and the planter himself on horseback complete the group. 

The overseer w^oulcl select the negro boys fourteen to six- 
teen years old to drive the mules, and would direct them to be 
at the gin house "the first thing in the morning" with four 
mules to pull the gin gearing, and themselves to drive. He 
would call up the giuner, who was the negro most expert at 
handling the gin and was one of the plantation institutions 
along with the blacksmith, carpenter, or wagoner, and give 
him necessary instructions. The rule of work on a })lantation, 
winter and summer alike, was from daylight to dark, and 
ginning was no exception to the rule. It was a rule particu- 
larl}^ suited to Sambo, for, in the winter, the days were short. 
Sometimes the giuner would ask for special liands as helpers, 
but generally the hands were assigned by the overseer. Often 
the women would help to carry the cotton from the lint room 



CHAP. IV.] 



OLD-TIME i;ALIN(i 



211 



o 







21 2 COTTON, [chap. IV. 

to the screw, and there were generally one or two women to 
sew the bagging together at the ends of the bale. 

When the morning came, the mules were hitched to the 
levers, and in a few moments the interior of the lint room 
would more nearly resemble fast falling snow than any imita- 
tion of it that has ever been attempted on tlie stage. Tliis 
cotton would be pushed from time to time from a small room 
behind the gin, and on the same floor, to the lint room })ro})er. 
One helper would keep the ginner supplied with cotton on the 
gin, another would keep the seed out of his way, and still a 
third would keep the lint cotton pushed down into the lint 
room . 

While the bale was being ginned preparations were going 
on at the press to pack it. At the bottom end of the box 
were doors hinged at the bottom by extending the rounded 
ends of the bottom batten of the door into holes mortised into 
the main frame of the screw. ( The word screw is used in the 
sense of its plantation meaning and means the entire screw 
press.) There were end doors at the bottom of the box also, 
but these were not hinged. Preparatory to packing a bale, 
the side doors were left down and the end doors were taken 
out. Tlie Ijlock was raised to its highest position by the mule 
( driven by a boy ) pulling the screw around by one of its long 
levers. A piece of bagging would be cut to three yards long 
and forty inches wide, and this would be spread on the bed of 
the box, the ends and sides extending over. Then the doors 
would be raised and fastened by cross-bars of wood and wedges 
also of wood. The movable block being noAS^ at its highest 
point, out of the top of the box, it would be turned around at 
right angles to the length of the box. This would give room 
to put the cotton in at each end from the baskets on a plat- 
form. The cotton would be brought from the lint room to 
this platform in these baskets. After putting in some cotton, 
two men would get in the box on top of it and tramp it down 
in order to make the cotton hold better. As they tramped, 



CHAP. IV.] 



OLD-TIME BALING. 



21:5 



iS' 



3' 




*>^ 



214 COTTON. [chap. IV. 

the insides of the box would often be wetted with a " mop " 
( a wad of cotton tied to the end of a stick ), for which purpose 
a bucket of water would be kept near by. When the box was 
full another piece of bagging was spread on the top, the block 
was turned, the mule unhitched from the end of the lever and 
being given a start the screw Avould run down itself until the 
increasing pressure w^ould gradually stop it. Then one mule 
w^ould be hitched to a lever, and by his pulling, further pres- 
sure would be applied. If the bale was a heavy one, another 
mule might have to be hitched to the lever to make the final 
round to run the screw down to make the bale standard 
size. When the last turn was made the wedges would be 
knocked out, the side doors let down, the end doors removed 
entirely and the bagging pulled over at the sides and at the 
ends, covering the latter completely. The ends were sewed 
with twine. Ropes were bound around the bale and tied by 
a peculiar knot that admitted of the rope being drawn very 
tightly by a lever before the knots were made. 

The bale being completed, the mule would be again 
hitched to the lever and the screw run up, thus relieving the 
pressure, wlien the bale was rolled out, new bagging was put 
down, the doors were raised and fastened, and the packing of 
the next bale was commenced. Five bales per day was ver}^ 
ordinary work, and eight Ijales made a good day's work. 

Modern Ginning. The ginning and l)aling of cotton is 
now performed mostly by steam power, and the unfortunate 
American principle of sacrificing everything to cheapness of 
production obtains in ginning cotton. (ijuality, except in the 
Sea Island cotton, is seldom considered, and cotton is rushed 
through the gins as fast as is possible, damaging the staple and 
reducing the value. One reason for this is tlie unwillingness 
to obtain sufficient machinery, as the gin and the capital repre- 
sented by its cost, lie idle eight months out of the year. Thus, 
if two gins can be made to do the work of three, the ginner 
prefers the arrangement, as the outlay on tlie third gin is 
avoided. 



CHAP. IV.] 



>rODERX GINNIN(i. 



215 



n 







21() COTTON. [chap. IV. 

There can be no doubt that the cotton produced before 
the war, and for some fifteen years after it, was less gin dam- 
aged than at present, l3ut may be had more seed in it. 

Before the sulxlivision of the hirge plantations into the 
numerous small farms of the present day, nearly every cotton 
planter had a gin house of his own. Now, however, there is 
not more than one gin house to each thirty-two farms growing 
cotton. From this it has resulted that cotton ginning has 
become a business, in a large measure separate and distinct 
from cotton growing. In the reorganization of southern 
industries on the new basis, it was first thought that movable 
ginneries would meet the necessities of the case, and for a year 
or two traction engines with ginning equipments went 
through the country for this purpose, shown in operation in 
Fig. 10-"). It was found, however, that they would not fill the 
requirements necessary. The small cotton farmers did not 
have the iacilities for storing their cotton until the whole or 
even the larger portion of their crop was gathered ; the exig- 
encies also of their financial condition made it necessary for 
them to put their cotton in the market without delay after it 
was gathered. For these reasons, the portable gins were 
obliged to change their location for nearly every bale the}' 
ginned, which was so expensive that, after a fair trial, they 
were abandoned as unsuitable. Immediately, in addition to 
the gin houses established of old upon the plantations, new 
ones were erected by country merchants and others, as toll 
gins, expressly for the purpose of supplying the wants of the 
new growth of small cotton producers. 

. The competition for custom among these new establish- 
ments greatly reduced the charges for ginning ; formerly the 
seed was given for the ginning, now bagging and ties are sup- 
plied in addition, by the gin house, where the seed is taken 
for payment. The money charges for ginning were at first one 
dollar per hundred pounds of lint ginned, or five dollars a 
bale ; now it has been reduced to three dollars and even as 



CHAT. IV.] 



MODERN (i INNING 



21 







218 COTTON'. [chap. IV. 

low as two dollars a bale where the gin provides the bagging 
and ties, or one dollar per bale where the farmer provides 
them, the farmer taking all the lint and seed. 

Unfortunately with the reduction of the charges for gin- 
ning, there has been, as before stated, a great falling off in the 
quality of the work done. There is usually a cheap steam 
engine of five or eight horse power, the gins average forty to 
forty-five saws each, and the object is to prepare the cotton as 
rapidly as f>ossible for their customers, to take the lint from 
the seed as closely as practicable, and not to reduce the weight 
of the product by .separating too much of the dust and motes 
from the lint. The conse<:{uence is that the quality of the 
staple is much poorer, not only on account of the motes and 
dust not removed, and of the short fibres which the close gin- 
ning of the seed mixes with the longer ones, but also by the 
knotting, and even breaking, of the fibres, owing to the high 
speed at which these small gins are run. in order to turn off 
each customer's work with the least possible delay. As a rule, 
a forty saw gin is made to give ten or twelve bales, or about 
5000 pounds of lint per day, whereas to separate the fibres 
without injury from the seed, four h>ales or 2000 pounds lint 
per day, is the most that was done when horse or mule power 
was used, before the introduction of steam engines. 

The deterioration of American cotton, which has recently 
been much complained of, both in America and in England, 
is partly due to the causes above mentioned. Other causes 
co-operate to promote this evil. The small and decreasing 
size of the farms leads more and more to the intermixture of 
cotton of different qualities. First, because where less than one 
bale is produced on the farm, it must necessarily be mixed with 
cotton grown elsewhere, and most likely of different quality. 
Again the necessities of the small farmers compel them to dis- 
pose of much of their cotton to country store-keepers, which 
is, perhaps, the most frequent cause of mixture. In these 
regards, the situation approaches that which has occasioned the 



CHAP. IV.] 



MODERN GlXXIXci. 



219 




SECTIO.\AL END ELEVATION OF MODER.\' GINNERY. 

Fig. 107. R Moderq Giqqery. 



220 COTTON. [chap. IV. 

inferiority of Indian cotton. This evil is corrected to .some 
extent by efficient "grading" by cotton factors. 

The laborers, being paid by the hundred weight, find it 
to their advantage not to separate the dirt and trash from the 
cotton ; indeed, it is not uncommon for them to add water and 
sand to increase the weight, a practice very apt to escape 
detection where the baskets and sheets are weighed in the twi- 
light, at the close of the day's work. The sheets on which tha 
cotton is emptied during the day by the pickers were formerly 
kept open and exposed to the sun's rays, .so that the dew on 
cotton gathered early in the morning might be thoroughly 
dried out ; now the sheets are kept carefully covered, so that 
the laborei" may escape loss from evaporation. 

In addition to the small country ginneries, a modern gin- 
nery is now generally found in all large southern market 
towns, and in some of the larger cities in each state an oil 
mill and fertilizer works are i"un in connection with the gin- 
nery. J]y })ermission of Mr. D. A. Tompkins, of Charlotte, 
N. C, two views of a cotton ginnery are given at Fig. 107. A 
modern ginnery consists of a complete plant for elevating the 
seed from the wagon to a room or receptacle above the gins, a 
series or battery of gins with condensers for removing the fibre 
( lint ) from the seed, and a lint conveyor to deliver the ginned 
cotton to one of the numerous baling presses now in u.se. 

The view at Fig. 108 shows a })lant of this description. 
The elevating tube is seen above the wagon of seed cotton and 
is connected at the opposite end to a fan of suitable capacity. 
The current of air generated by the fan shown draws the 
cotton uj^ the telescopic tube from the wagon or cotton house 
into what are known as receptacle boxes. These hold a sup- 
ply of seed cotton, which is taken from them by short horizon- 
tal feeders to each of the gins. By these feeders a constant 
supply of cotton to each gin is assured. To .secure economy 
in ginning it is advisal)le not to allow the gin to stop work too 
long in changing from one farmer's wagon of cotton to 



CHAT. IV.] 



MODEUX (I INNING. 



221 




222 COTTON. [iiiAi'. IV. 

another, and the above named arrangement enal)le.s the 
receptacle to begin filling with cotton from a new wagon after 
the old cotton has passed into the feeders, thns economizing 
time, and yet keeping the cottons separate, wliich is of consid- 
erable im])ortance at a custom gin. 

The Saw Gin. Tlie feeder above the gin is somewhat on 
the principle of the automatic feeder for cotton openers in a 
spinning mill, and depends for its action on a spiked lattice 
and spiked cylinder, which takes the seed cotton over into the 
roll box at a regular rate, and yet does not carry over heavy 
foreign substances which might injure the saws. A feeder 
shown on the Pratt gin at Fig. 110, is the usual style of 
feeder where the gins aYe not arranged in a battery. 

The construction of a saw gin may be Ijriefly expressed as 
a series of circular saws with fine teeth, revolving with an arc of 
their circumference projecting through a grid into a receptacle 
for seed cotton ; they tear the lint from the seed and carry it 
through the grid. It is removed from the saws by a brush 
and carried to a condenser. 

Fig. Ill is a section through a gin showing one saw 
marked D. The seed cotton receptacle, or seed l)Ox, is marked 
A. C is the saw cylinder on which the saws are fixed, 
another view of which is shown in Fig. 112 at C, while the 
individual saws are shown in Fig. 112 at A and B. E in Fig. 
Ill shows the grate through which the saws project, known 
as the breast or grate fall, also shown in Fig. 112 at 1). M is 
a moveable iron plate to regulate the cleaning of the seed and 
is adjustable by the screw X. The chamber. A, is full of seed 
and not seed cotton. Figs. lOS, 10<), 111, 112, and 118 are 
inserted by courtesy of the Eagle ( otton Gin Compau}^ of 
Bridgewater, Mass. 

Seed cotton having been fed into the chamber, A, passes 
round on the outside of the mass of seed. The teeth of the 
saws projecting through the grid about half to three-quarters 
of an inch tear the fibres from the seeds nearest to them. The 



^ 
o 




224 COTTON. [CHAI'. IV. 

quick speed of the saws ( about 3o0 revolutions per minute ) 
sets up a rolling motion of the mass of seed, which is the rea- 
son for one of the names of the chamber, "roll box." New- 
seed cotton is continually being brought under the action of 
the saws, the fibres are carried forward by the revolution of 
the saws and are removed l)y a rotary brush. Some gins are 
made with what is called a "revolving head," in which case 
the ends of the roll box are iron plates which revolve on studs 
at the same speed as the rolling mass of seed. The ol)ject is to 
reduce friction of the seed on the ends of the roll 1)0X and 
keep the mass of seed rotating at a uniform speed all across 
the box. 

The circular In'ush, shown in Fig. Ill at J, and at E in 
Fig. 112, is an important part of tlie machine; it should be 
filled with heavy bristles and the frame work and ril)S should 
be strongly constructed and well bound together. The brush 
revolves at four or five times as many revolutions per minute 
as the saws, in the direction indicated by the arrow below it 
in Fig. Ill, and the cotton is blown either into a lint room 
on the old system, or, where a condenser is used, the fibres 
are drawn forward by the air current to the surface of wire 
covered drums or screens ; by passing between these screens 
they are delivered in the. form of a sheet, being deposited 
on the floor in case of gins that are not connected to a 
conveyer. 

Where several gins are connected in a battery, as shown 
in Fig. 109, the lint is drawn forward through tubes from 
each of the gins in the battery to one condenser. Each tube 
can be separately " cut off," and thus one or more gins can be 
used at once, and the current of air regulated for each of them. 

This condenser delivers above a baling press, which may 
be constructed with two boxes, so that cotton can be delivered 
into one, while the other is being packed. 

The saws should project about three-fourths of an incli 
through the grate or they will cause the breast to shake or 



226 



COTTON. 



[cirAi'. IV, 



dance. The mote board sliould be perfectly siiiootli, otherwise 
motes tend to gather and gradually choke up. 

Gins are most frequently used of sixty to eighty saws 
each, ten-incli or twelve-inch diameter, and the highest speed 
that a twelve-inch saw cylinder ought to be driven for good 
work is 300 per minute, although they are frequently detri- 
mentally run up to 400 revolutions per minute and above. 




Fig^ HI. £gw Gin ir| Sectiori. 

Gin Damage. Defective ginning is caused by having the 
saws too near to the Ijars of the grate so as to rub, by run- 
ning the saws too fast, or by having teeth too sharp ; when 
newly sharpened the teeth have a square edge which ought to 
be somewhat rounded off by running some old cotton loaded 
Avith sand through the gin. 

An experienced judge of cotton can detect the results of 
bad ginning by an examination of the cotton in the bale. 



CHAP. IV.] 



OIX DAMAGE. 



227 






A. Saw in Sections. 



15. Solid Siiw. 




C. Saw Sliafl and Saws. 




D. Grate, Grid, or Breast. 




E. Brush. 

Fig. 112. Parts of Saw Gir^. 



228 COTTON. [chap. IV. 

There are three principal effects caused by bad ginning ; one is 
nep, another is cut staple, and the third is stringy or tailed 
cotton. Cotton should never be ginned while it is wet or even 
damp, as it will not leave the seed as satisfactorily then as it 
will when ginned in a dry .state, and after it has been removed 
it has a tendency to string, or form lumps and bunches. This 
is the least important damage that is done in a gin, the cut 
staple being much more detrimental in succeeding operations. 

The cut staple is caused hy running the gin too fast. In 
this case, the fibres are ruptured by the sudden pull given to 
them by the saw teeth, and an indication of a gin liaving 
been run too fast is sometimes seen in a bale when the cotton 
is found to contain a large number of little clusters or V 
shaped bunches of fibres, showing that the brush has not been 
able to cleanse the saw teeth sufficiently slowly to brusli these 
kinks out. Of course, the faster the saw is run the faster the 
brush lias to be operated in order to remove the fibre at all. 
Neps are caused by saws not being properly set and rubbing 
against the grid ; the fibre in this way is rolled into minute 
balls, whicli are very difficult to remove in the after process 
of carding. When it does not actually roll it into neps, the 
gin bruises the fibre sufficiently to cause the whole of the cot- 
ton that passes between the wrongly set saws and the bars to 
be of a rough fluffy nature. If the samples drawn from the 
bale show gin damage the whole shipment ought to be con- 
demned, for alfhough it may, and probably is not, grown by 
one farmer, it is far more probably ginned at one ginnery, and 
the fault will often run through the lot. 

Cotton Ginneries. The capacity of a saw gin driven by 
steam or water power is about eight pounds per saw per hour, 
or a 500 pound bale can be ginned in one hour on a sixty saw 
gin. As has been previously pointed out, the staple of the 
cotton is better if ginned more slowly than this. Often gins 
are speeded up so as to gin a bale in thirty-five to forty-five 
minutes, but the results are bad. The old mule power gin of 



COTTON GINNERIES. 



229 






"^, -.A 







230 COTTON. [ciiAi-. IV. 

forty to forty-five saws rarely does above loOO pounds per day 
or only one-half of the capacity of the steam driven gin, but 
other conditions being equal, does better work. The makers 
of cotton gins assume that each saw will gin ten bales a season. 

Under the gin, as it is usually constructed, is an adjust- 
able sliding mote-board, by which it is claimed that motes can 
be separated from the lint, by regulating the volume of air 
passing to the gin brush, which sweeps the lint into the lint 
room. 

At the bottom of the roll box or grate fall there is also 
another adjustment, so that the seeds can, if desired, be so 
thoroughly cleaned as to be almost de-linted before leaving the 
gin, or allowed to drop out with the short lint still attached, 
which is the much better plan where good results are desired. 

Unfortunately, the farmer objects to the fractional loss 
even of the motes or short lint on the seed and cotton, the 
removal of which would be advisable, as the value of the 
cotton would then be increased. 

The Modern Ginnery* It is amusing to watch some 
farmers who bring their cotton to a modern ginnery with its 
numerous tubes and trunks. Their leading idea apparently is 
that one or another of these mysterious orifices may be a 
means of robbing them, and that if they do not watch all of 
the feed and delivery ends at one and the same time, some of 
their cotton will mysteriously disappear. The same suspicious 
feeling prevents a farmer selling his cotton in the seed. From 
the point of view of the spinner, it would be to the advantage 
of many of the new cotton mills starting up in the South, to 
have their own ginnery where cotton could be ginned slowly 
and carefully, saving the staple ; but it has been found almost 
impossible to persuade the farmer to sell his cotton on the seed. 
This on his })art is a wise 2)i'ecaution if he intends to return 
the seed to the soil. Another reason for not disposing of seed 
cotton is that several states have laws prohibiting the sale of 
cotton on the seed between dusk and sunrise as a precaution 
against plantation theft over night. 



CHAl'. IV.] 



THE MODERN GINNERY. 



2;]] 




232 rOTTOX. [.hai-. IV. 

A roprc'scMitatioii ol" one of ilu'sc steam giiiiu>rie.s is shown 
at Fig. 114, whore the wagons laden with seed cotton add a 
picturesqueuess to the scene. A little to the right of the gin- 
nery are seen several bales ol" cotton dum{)ed in the Held, 
where they may have lain I'or weeks. This is one of the 
causes of the mildewed and decayed cakes of cotton occasion- 
ally found at the spinning mill. 

It is not to be assumed that all ginneries are so complete 
as the modern plant Just described. There are many on the 
very primitive principle described in the early ])art of this 
chapter, with the wooden pin-gears oi)erated by mules or horses ; 
there are others on remote water-] )owers, or driven l)y anti- 
quated engines with gins dating hack two decades or more, 
and each edition of a southern paper, in tlie ginning season, 
generally contains a rejjort of a boiler bursting, an engine 
gone to pieces, or a ginner}^ burned down. 

Some of the ginneries which were Iniilt in slavery days 
are still used, because of the labor and ex|)ense of hauling 
seed cotton to the custom gin, which takes up as much time as 
is absorl)ed l)y the primitive apparatus already installed, but 
the tendency of the times is towards large custom ginneries 
with power presses. 

Fig. 11") on the opposite page shows individual Ameri- 
can cotton fibres : 

1. Texas. 

2 and .'>. Rome, Georgia. 

4. Sea Island. 

."). Vazoo Delta, Mississippi. 

The Roller Gin. There are other important machines for 
the purpose of giiuiing cotton besides the saw gin. l*erhai)S 
the best known of tliese are the knife roller gins ibr single 
or double rollers. 

The single roller single action gin is a long staple cotton 
gin for Sea Island and Egyptian cotton, production seventy to 
ninety pounds of ginned cotton })ei' hour. 



CHAT. IV.] 



THE i;OLLER GIN. 



•)Af\ 




284 COTTON. [CIIAP. IV. 

The single roller double aetion gin is a short stajile gin 
for American Upland, Indian, Chinese, and all sliort staple 
cottons having a wooly or green seed, production twenty-five 
to forty-five pounds short staple per hour, and forty to seventy 
pounds long staple per hour. This is the favorite gin for 
India. 

The double roller gin is for both long and short staple 
cottons, production 95 to 125 pounds short staple per hour ; 
140 to 180 pounds long staple per hour. The double roller 
gin is the best gin where ten, twenty or thirty of them can be 
operated in one mill, or where mill owners gin their own cot- 
ton, as they do in India and Brazil. The above figures have 
been supplied by Piatt Brothers & Co., of Oldham, England. 
Figs. 113 and 115 are used by courtesy of the New England 
Cotton Manufacturers' Association, 

There is no doubt that the roller gin separates fibre from 
the seed with very much less damage than in the case of the 
saw gin. Referring to Fig. 115, which was prepared by Mr. 
Edward Atkinson, the well-known statistician of Boston, it 
will be seen at once how the tugging of a saw at such delicate 
fibres as are shown in the figure, can bruise and break the 
filament. Experiments have proved that cotton from the 
same field is stronger when ginned on a roller gin than when 
ginned on a saw gin, and while the expense of roller ginning 
is slightly greater than that of the saw gin, there is no doubt 
that roller-ginned cotton is more valuable and would bring a 
higher price in the market, if a supply of roller-ginned Amer- 
ican cotton were available ; the writer feels convinced that the 
time is not far distant when some form of the roller gin will 
be widely adopted in tlie American cotton belt. It is now 
very largely used in India, a country which formerly utilized 
the most primitive methods of separating cotton from the seed. 
There the method of ginning formerly used, and which still 
obtains to some extent, is the old roller gin. 

Fig. 116 shows one form of construction of this gin, 
which requires two persons to work it, one turning the upper 



CIIAI'. IV.] 



THE K(Jl.l,i;i; (ilN. 



235 




Fig. 116. Hiqdoo Ginnina- 




F13. 117. Hiridoo Giri. 



236 COTTON. [ciiAP. IV. 

roll with a staff, and the other turning the under roll hy a 
crank, feedino- cotton at the same time. 

The gin shown in Fig. 117 is a sligiitly imi)r()ved form 
of the same gin, as it can be operated and fed hy one person. 

Percentage of Lint. A rough and ready mode of calculat- 
ing the proi)ortion of lint to the total weight of seed cotton is 
that the lint forms one-third of the whole, and the farmer 
always hopes that his cotton will "third " itself. As a matter 
of fact, the average will hardly be one-third. Cotton grown 
on rich land does not usually third itself, nor does cotton 
ginned immediately after picking, or picked after the boll has 
recently opened, as the excess of natural moisture in the seed 
has not had time to dry out, but for all practical purposes an 
estimate that two-thirds by weight of the seed cotton is seed 
and oiie-third is lint is sufficiently accurate. The proportion of 
Unt to seed is increasing year by year as the cotton farmer 
becomes more careful in the selection of his seed. 

Baling. At the country ginneries, the cotton is baled as 
well as the fticilities admit of, but has to be compressed again 
at a shipping point. The pressed bale is formed in some few 
districts still by the old mule press shown at Fig. 102, but 
very rarely. In this case, the number of bales made in a day 
does not exceed ten, and this with two or three men and a 
mule, the production being usually between five and eight 
bales per day. 

Power presses are rapidly being introduced and there is 
an immense variety of these — screw presses, direct steam 
cylinder presses, down packing presses, u}) j»acking presses, 
double box presses, self tramping presses, and so on. 

A figure of a double box revolving press with a direct 
acting steam tramper, is shown at Fig. 118. 

This press is so arranged that the baling boxes can be 
revolved on a platform, so as to bring them alternately under 
the operation of the press. After the bagging has been 
spread the cotton is thrown into the box which is not under 




Fig. 118. Cotton Balirtg Press, 



ciiAi'. IV.] I'.AMNi.. 2:^{) 

the operation of the pre^s, until it i.s tiUed with luu.se fiiikes of 
fibre. Steam is then turned on the piston above the 
''tramper." This is a i»laten workino- in slides, whirh is 
pressed down on the loose cotton to reduce the space it occu- 
pies. It is raised as well as lowered bv steam. After several 
fillings and trani[)ings the box is full, and the })latfurm is 
revolved to bring the box over the press. The platform is 
carried and revolves on a hollow column, four inches in 
diameter. 

The ])latforni of tlie press proj)er is moved U))wards by 
the rotation of a threaded gear or wheel on a five incli steel 
screw. 

After sufficient pressure has been put on the bale, the ties 
are passed round and buckled, tlie pressure released, and the 
bale removed by throwing oi)en the sides or doors of the box. 

Additional information on baling is given in the next 
chapter. 

Fig. 119 is a view of a southern cotton mill, the Chewalla 
cotton mill at Eufaula, Alabama. This is a small mill, but 
is the average size of the southern mills. The above named 
figure, together with several others in the book, viz. : — 
Figs. 43, 44, 64, 91, 14i, 101, and 163, are used b}' courtesy 
of the Central of Georgia Kailway Company, and are views 
on the line of that railroad. 



240 COTTON. [chap. v. 



CHAPTER V. 

THE FARMER TO THE tOTToX MKRCHAxXT. — LOCAL SALE OF COTTON". 

SAMPLING AND GRADING. — COMPRESSING. OCEAN SHIPMENT. — 

METHODS OF BALING COTTON. 

The Farmer to the Cotton Merchant. The American 
cotton crop has reached the immense total of 10,000,000 bales 
in one year, and the reader will correctly conclude that there 
exists C|uite an army of merchants and brokers whose princi- 
pal business is in dealing with cotton between the grower and 
the spinner, or to use an American expression " handling" the 
crop. As yet, less than one million bales are consumed in 
the cotton mills of the New South, and consequently the ulti- 
mate destination of most of the cotton crop is New England, 
Canada, or Europe, and the larger cotton houses at the inland 
and seaport cities have direct foreign connections. On the 
otlier band, they liave buyers at many of the villages or I'ail- 
road stations in their district, and thus they form a direct 
link between the farmer and the Boston, Liverpool, Havre, or 
Bremen cotton merchant. 

Local Sale of Cotton. In the days of slave grown cotton 
and of large plantations, it was the custom for the up country 
planters to consign their cotton to a seaport — New Orleans, 
Wilmington, Norfolk, Charlestown, or Savannah, or to some 
lai-ge river city like i\Iem[)his or St. Louis, and leave it in the 
hands of a commission merchant for sale. The planter having 
paid haulage to the river or railroad, transit charges to the 
market and insurance while in transit, found that the deduc- 
tions from the merchant's remittance included charges for 
weighing, packing, storing, and repairing bagging, together 
with two and one-half per cent, commission, and consequently 



CHAI". v.] 



LOCAL SALK OF C()TT(»N. 



241 






fd 




242 COTTON. - [chap. v. 

this part of the business was a heavy tax on him. The s^^s- 
tem was followed for some time after the war, and meant an 
average expense of })rol)al)ly five dollars per bale to get the 
cotton from the plantation to the ship. Partially in conse- 
quence of this expense and principally because of the growing 
of cotton by so many small farmers who are not free agents 
or who cannot trust the commission man, tlie consignment of 
cotton for sale has almost died a natural death, and it is now 
almost all sold to local storekeepers and by them to cotton 
exporting firms in a neighboring city, or it is hauled by the 
farmer into the city and sold directly to the exporter. 

The average small farmer is usually in debt to his local 
storekeeper, and also has to turn over to the ground landlord 
so many bales of cotton as rent, onedialf, one-third, or one- 
fourth of the crop, according to the terms of tenancy, the 
land owner having this claim prior to all other creditors. 

The local storekeeper is dignified by the name of mer- 
chant, and, although the town in which the store is situated 
may only be populated by five white people, seven niggers and 
a yellow dog, he is also mayor, postmaster, tax collector, and 
may l)e owns the cotton gin in addition to dispensing hard- 
ware, dry goods, boots, shoes, groceries, buggies, and fertilizers. 

The farmer has to satisfy this merchant's mortgage for a 
year's supply before he can sell his cotton, and it generally 
happens that it all goes to the storekeeper, at his own valua- 
tion, to pay otf the farmer's debts. This incubus being- 
removed, the farmer's credit is again good, and he returns 
home with bags of fiour, and suits of clothes, mule harness, a 
jug of corn whiskey, a new banjo, or gingham for a woman's 
gown, according to his tastes, but all of which is the beginning 
of another deljt to l)e paid for by cotton for which the land is 
not yet plowed. If he has been successful in smuggling off' 
his farm, unknowai to his merchant, one bale of cotton during 
the night, he may be in the unusual position of having money 
to spend. He also usually sells the seed that ought to be 
returned to the around for manure. 



CHAP, v.] 



LOCAL SALE OF COTTON. 



243 



I? 




244 COTTON. [tiiAi'. V. 

The faniK'r wlio is .sufficiently iiule})eii(lent to be able to 
sell his own cotton, hauls it to the same merchant, and sells it 
at the best ))i"ice he can get, as a rule getting cash for it, less 
a (leiluction for weighing. The storekee|)er, who in addition 
to his other duties, is often a buying agent for a cotton 
exporter in a neighboring interior city wdiicli is a cotton 
market or compi'essing point, or if not the buying agent him- 
self, is in touch with one, forwards this cotton in carload lots, 
each car carrying cotton grown on half a dozen fiirms and of 
as many (jualities. 

In the above case it has been assumed that the cotton has 
to be shipped by rail, but it often happens that water transit 
is the chea})er, and possibly the only mode of shipment. In 
this case the cotton is loaded on the river steamers, so familiar 
to residents near the Mississippi river. Red river, and other 
rivers, as shown at Fig. 121. Another view ( Fig. 120) shows 
cars laden with cotton on a branch railroad. On arrival at 
the city, it is trucked out and arranged on large platforms for 
examination and gi-ading, as shown in Fig. 122, from a photo- 
graph taken at the Charlotte, N. (A, cotton i)latform. At these 
platforms it comes in et)ntact with cotton hauled in l>y road 
from within a radius of fifteen or twenty miles, and which is 
sold on the streets of the city by the farmer directly to the 
cotton exporting hrms. 

Several other views are shown, one in Fig. 12;> repre- 
senting the streets of a Texas city on a hot day — the open 
umbrellas of the whites testifying to this. The ftirmers' 
wagons laden with cotton are seen all round the s(]uare. 

The farmer deals directly with the only firm that inter- 
venes between him and the foreign cotton merchant, and thus 
middlemen's profits are avoided. The cotton exporting firm is 
of course in touch with prices all over the cotton world through 
the local cotton exchange, and usually has some advantage 
over the farmer in this way, but the latter has to sell, or else 
haul his cotton fifty miles in another direction. The trade 



ClIAI'. v.] 



LOCAL SALE OF COTTON. 



245 




246 COTTON. [luav. V. 

being made, tlie cotton is })assed Ijy two cit}^ officials — a cot- 
ton weigher and a cotton inspector. The duties of the former 
are to o'ive an official weioht, and the latter to examine both 
sides and tlie middle of the bale, looking for false packed cotton, 
wet bales, bad baling, excessive weight of tares, and other 
defects, for any or all of which tlie farmer is penalized by a 
deduction from the actual weight. The decision of the 
weigher and inspector is usually accepted as final on both 
sides, and a fee in the larger markets where much cotton is 
sold, of ten cents (five pence) per bale is paid by the farmer 
for the examination, which increases in snuill })laces to twenty 
or twenty-five cents. 

These weight deductions are not at all infrequent in the 
cotton belt, but the English or northern spinner usually finds 
his cotton invoiced to liim at full weight. On the other hand, 
the custom is to pay the farmer on the gross weight, including 
bagging and ties ( tares and hoops ), which weigh twenty to 
thirty pounds per bale, and for Avhich the English spinner 
gets an allowance. 

Sampling and Grading. In the cities the exporters affix 
a tag to each bale by whiclj to identify it, and take a sample 
from every bale, which is numbered the same as the tag. This 
method of sampling cotton is shown at Fig. 125. The sam- 
ples are juit in a basket and taken to a room with a good 
light, judged by an experienced " grader," and if necessary 
compared with standard sam[)les. Thus the cotton is assorted 
into gra-des such as low middling, middling, good middling, 
etc., as explained in Chapter I. It is then made up into 
100 bale lots, if possible, and " compressed," being branded at 
the same time with the mark under which it is to be sold in 
Europe. A sample yoova of a Mississippi cotton factor is 
shown in Fig. l.')(). 

Compressing. By the term "compressing" is meant the 
second pressing of the bale of cotton. The old wooden screws 
on the farms or even the more modern power l)aling })re.sses 



CHAP, v.] 



COMPKESSINO. 



247 




^^ 







' it 



^ K > 











$Ji\ 'its. ' 











24S ' COTTON. [cuAi>. V. 

are only sutticiently })oweiiul to make a lo(jse bale about 
twenty-eight inches thick. Tlie power necessary to compress 
a bale into the small compass of the package as it arrives in 
Liverpool or Boston is very great, and the plant very expen- 
sive, but of great ca})acity. Consequently, at every inland 
city and seaport in eacli state, there are compresses. Some of 
these belong to private cotton export firms who do a large 
business, but more frequently to the railroad companies. The 
railroads give through freight rates to Europe or Boston, and 
establish the compresses so as to economize space ; firstly, in 
their own freight cars by handling closer packed cotton, and sec- 
ondly to get a greater weight of cotton in a ton measurement 
( ocean ton ), and thus be able to give l)etter ocean freight 
rates to their customers. It is found that an extra and often 
useless patcli of bagging is also placed on each bale during 
compressing. 

These compresses are mas.sive affairs, with batteries of 
two or three large boilers, the press proper, steam and 
hydraulic cylinders, etc. Tliere are also the large storediouses 
of the })lant, and the various appliances for liandHng and 
loading the cotton, both before and after it is ])ressed. 

An ordinary compress reciuires, to pay expenses, at least 
a business of 40,000 bales per annum ; so they are located 
only at central and convenient disti'ibuting points, to receive 
the output of the various plantations and storehouses. 

The compresses are very strong and heavy, a good illus- 
tration of which is found in the following record of the 
weights of some of the parts of the press : 

Lower platen, about .... 22,000 pounds 

Upper platen, about .... 16,000 " 

Crosshead, about 25,000 

Two wrought iron links, each . . 24,000 " 

High pressure steam cylinder . . . 25,000 " 

Low pressure steam cylinder . . . 22,000 " 

A^arious pressures are i)ut on a l)ale of cotton, according 

to the capacity of the })ress, varying from 1000 to ;)()00 tons. 



CHAP, v.] 



COMPRKSSIXG 



240 




2o0 COTTON. [HIAI'. V. 

The l)ale in some instances is reduced from three feet thick to 
six inches thick, thougli after leaving the press this will 
expand to twelve inches thick. The steam pressure varies 
from about 100 pounds to 120 pounds, and the hydraulic 
pressure from oOOO to 4000 pounds per square inch. The 
steam cylinders vary in size from sixty inches in diameter to 
seventy-five 'inches in diameter, nine feet to ten feet stroke, 
hydraulic cylinders, from sixteen and one-half inches to thirty 
inches diameter, and five feet four inches stroke. 

The compress strikes the visitor to the South perhaps 
more than any other process in the raising of cotton, or in its 
preparation for the market. It is interesting to see a bale 
which has been already partially pressed at a country liand 
press, about twenty-eight inclies thick, placed between the 
huge jaws of this contrivance and condensed in bulk until it 
is only eight inches thick, and the agility and daring of the 
fourteen niggers who insert the bale, the covers and the ties, 
between the jaws of the huge press, are very noticeable. It is 
very clear that much agility is developed when it is recorded 
that at the Charlotte, North Carolina, compress, there is a record 
of 936 bales having been compressed in five hours, each bale 
tied with seven bands and heads well sewed. The average 
dimensions of a bale from tlie farm are : length, five feet ; 
height, four feet ; width, twenty-eight inches, making about 
forty-eight cubic feet, or eleven pounds to the cubic foot. The 
powerful compresses now constructed will reduce the above 
bale measurement in the press to seven inches thick, making- 
seven cubic feet, with a density of about seventy-five pounds 
to the cubic foot. After the bale is released from the press, it 
expands, but remains at a density of between forty and fifty 
pounds, after the pressure has been removed. The cost of com- 
pressing is nominal compared with the great saving in freight. 

The compress shown in Fig. 127, and made by Mr. Lucien 
A^oorhies, of New Orleans, is known as the Morse press, and 
consists of a huge steam cylinder which is ninety inches in 
diameter and worked at a pressure of 120 pounds to the 



CHAP, v.] 



('(JMPltESSING. 



251 




252 COTTON. [ciiAi-. V. 

squnre inch. It canics at tlic lower cud of the piston rod a 
wedge shaped toothed rack, into which are geared cyeloidal 
sectors, one at each side of the rack. Each of these sectors is 
very massive, and each lias two links or lifting rods connected 
to it in such a manner as to raise the platen or platform. As 
before stated, these parts weigh from 1(),00() to 2-"). (100 pounds 
each. Between the cylinder and the lower platform is a beam, 
forming part of the frame work of the press, and it carries an 
u})[)er platen supported from a wedge. The lower and uj){)er 
})laten form the jaws of the })ress and are grooved in such a 
manner as to admit of the tics or bands being slipped around 
the l)ale at a period when the highest pressure is being exerted. 
Usually the ties are removed from the plantation bale, the 
bale is trucked to the press, additional bagging put on the 
lower platform, the Ijale dropped on this, and additional l)ag- 
giiig thrown on the upper part of the bale. Steam is then 
admitted to the cylinders, and in cases where the wedge is 
used, also admitted to a small additional engine for the pur- 
pose of moving the wedge, the bale being raised with the 
lower ])latform towards a tixed beam. 

The builder of the press estimates that the maximum 
pressure is 0,000,000 pounds on each bale, after allowing for 
dead weight and friction. While the bale is in this position 
new bands are passed around it and made tight, the pressure 
is then removed, and the bale taken out to be marked and 
trimmed. The distance between the jaws of the press, when 
the highest pressure is being exerted, is between six and nine 
inches, according to the size of the l)ale, but the l)ale imme- 
diately expands, on being released, to one and a half or twice 
this size. The greatest depth between the jaws of the press is 
sixty-four inches, and the numl)er of men rec^uired to operate 
the press is al)Out fourteen. 

Ocean Shipment. The bales are marked with three or 
four letters or some device to indicate the lot of cotton to 
which they belong. These lots are the result of various 
"^"gradings " to ol)tain l)ales in each shipment all of one class. 



CIlAl". v.] 



OCEAN SHIPMENT. 



i5' 



CD 




254 COTTON. [(HA1>. V. 

It is then usually weiglieil, piled away in covered tVeight cai's 
holdino- on an average fifty-five bales to a cnr, and i'orwarded 
to a sea])ort, not necessarily the nearest, 1)ut the one to wliicli 
the best land freight rates are to be had. This dejx'iids on 
the current position of the railroads, whether they are cutting- 
rates with one another for special classes of trade, or wliether 
there is a combine keeping up the rates to any })articular ])ort. 

It is more than probable that the cotton will be tbi'warded 
to the sea])ort in loose bales and " compressed " there. In that 
case, the bales are taken right from the " com})ress " to the 
ship side, the ship lying close by, either slung over into the 
hold three bales at once, or drawn u[) a gangway, and packed 
away very carefully, being screwed down into their places by 
jack screws to reduce the possibility of tlie cargo shifting. 
The loading of cotton for ocean slii})ment into a tramp steamer 
is shown at Fig. 128, representing a scene at the i)ort of 
Savannah, Georgia. 

There is a continual waste of cotton in transit such as 
sweepings and pickings from bales. There is a considerable 
C{uantity of sample cotton discarded after each cotton deal, 
while the frequent fires in cotton districts create a large quan- 
tity of loose cotton. Dealing in loose cotton is an important 
trade, and, as it has to be sorted and baled, a immber of peo- 
ple are engaged at sea})ort towns in this work. At Fig. 129 
a pictui'e of negroes thus em})loyed is shown. 

Methods of Baling Cotton, The baling of American cot- 
ton calls for special criticism. Contrast an American bale with 
an Egyptian or Indian one in any European cotton market, 
and there is a picture which needs no comment. The American 
bale shows the bare cotton in a dozen places. The cover is 
usually hanging in rags owing to the breakage of ties ( bands), 
and the wretched quality of the bagging ( tare ) used, while 
the bales from Egypt and India are perfect, firm, s(iuare cor- 
nered packages, entirely enclosing the cotton. 

The covering for cotton bales used in the South is known 
as gunny bag. This is made up in fifty yard lengths and in 



CHAP, v.] METHODS OF BALING COTTON. 



255 




Fig. 127. R Cottoq Bale Corqpress. 



-•">'! COTTON. [CIIAP. V. 

forty-two iiK-li widths. The wciglit is usually two and one-half 
pounds to the yard. 'J'ho ])agging and tics are estimated to 
cost seventy-five cents per hale. 

The rope formerly used for tieing cotton hales is not now 
used, its place having heen taken by iron hands or "ties." 
Each tie passes round the hale once and is secured by i»a.ssing 
the end through an arrow, anchor, or buckle fastener. These 
ties are made in England as well as in the United States, and 
in ordinary years the price is fifty-five to sixty cents per bun- 
dle. Each bundle contains thirty ties, supposed to be enough 
for five bales. In 1896, in consequence of the American 
makers getting control of the English output, the price was 
advanced to $1.25 per Ijundle, l)ut has since been reduced. 

It had been hoped by the southern planters that wire ties 
would ..offer an avenue of escape from the exactions of the flat 
iron tie trust. The wire ties are made of large, stiff, iron 
wire, a size smaller than the ordinary lead jiencil, twelve feet 
long, and about thirty to the bundle. They weigh about the 
same as the ordinary flat tie, and when bought by the carload 
can be retailed at one dollar [)er Inmdle. The cotton compresses 
found that the wire tires would not work. At first the wire 
was too thin, and cut the bagging. Later the difficulty seemed 
to be that the wire was too thick, and not pliable enough for 
the compress, consequently a number of the conq)resses 
declined to receive bales bound with the wire ties. 

The weight of the bale increases with each season, as will 
be seen from the following table of }iet weights : 

1855-56 420 pounds. 

1865-66 441 " 

1875-76 444 " 

1885-86 463 " 

1891-92 473 " 

1892-93 473 " 

1893-94 474 " 

1894-95 484 " 

1895-96 476 " 

1896-97 477 " 



CHAT, v.] 



>rKTHOr)S OF BALING COTTON. 



257 




258 



COTTON. 



[chap. v. 



The reason for the weight being ke[)t U}) is that cotton 
merchants discourage hght bales, and indeed in several states, 
Texas, Arkansas, and North Carolina, it is the custom to make 
a deduction of a dollar for each bale from the price paid to 
the farmer if the bale weighs less than 400 pounds, and two 
dollars or even three dollars in Texas if it weighs under 300 
pounds. The reason of this is that many of the charges on 
cotton are made at a fixed rate per bale, and thus the total 
charges per pound on a shipment of heavy bales are some- 
what less than on the same number of light bales. 

An interesting table is given below from Shepperson's 
Cotton Facts, showing average weight of cotton bales from 
each state for the past six years : 

AVERAGE WEIGHTS OF AMERICAN COTTON BALES. 



Season 

of 
1891-92. 



North Corolina. 
South Carolina. 

Georgia 

Florida 

Alabama 

Mississippi 

Louisiana 

Texas. 

Arkansas 

Tennessee 



Average for U.S. 



rounds. 
485 
487 
487 
487 
498 
49(i 
498 
521 
508 
502 
499 



Season 

of 
1S92-93. 



Pounds. 
482 
485 
487 
485 
502 
500 
500 
530 
515 
501 
500 



Season 


Season 


Sea.son 


of 


of 


of 


1893-94. 


189-1-95. 


1895-96. 


Pounds. 


Pounds. 


Pounds. 


480 


490 


488 


481 


491 


484 


484 


492 


485 


482 


490 


480 


501 


508 


500 


500 


508 


500 


502 


51] 


508 


522 


532 


525 


508 


518 


512 


500 


510 


502 


498 


509 


502 



Season 

of 
lS9t;-97. 

Pounds. 
489 
484 
488 
483 
506 
506 
507 
528 
515 
502 
502 



The figures are gross weights. 

The standard size of the American bale ( Fig. 131 ), as 
before named, is fifty-four inches long by twenty-seven inches 
wide, is usually sixteen inches thick, and weighs about 500 
pounds on the average. The thickness varies according to the 
expansion after compressing. The weight and make-up of 
this bale is very different from cotton of other countries. The 
Brazilian and Indian bales are smaller and lighter, the Egyp- 
tian bale, though not larger, is heavier. American cotton has 
the reputation of being perhaps the worst packed of any cotton 



CIIAI'. v.] 



MKTIIODS OI'^ r.AI.IXG < OT'l\)N. 



2")0 




260 COTTON. [ciiAr. v. 

that is raised. The covers arc usually of very poor (juality, 
tlic ties not sutticieutly strong or well bound, and although 
the bale on leaving the compress may be of satisfactory a})})ear- 
ance, it does not get very far on its journey before a tie has 
burst, the Ijagging gets torn, and on arrival at the northern or 
European mill, it is usually a very sorry object. Not only so, 
but the bagging, although of poor quality, is usually so heavy 
as to materially afiect the percentage of cotton that the spinner 
gets from the gross weight of the invoice, and forms the subject 
of numerous complaints. Some remarks are given below on 
the system of making round bales, which is attracting some 
attention ; certainly if this round bale system, or some other 
new baling system is not immediately adopted, considerable 
attention ought to be given to im])rovements in the present 
method of baling American cotton. At present, the loss to the 
spinner through heavy tares, damaged cotton, and cotton lost 
in transit, is considerable. If greater attention were paid to 
making bales of uniform size, more closely compressed, in 
thinner but stronger covers, and more ties to the bale, con- 
siderable benefit would result to the larmer, as the s])inner 
would be able to pay a higher price for the cotton. The Egyp- 
tian bale, for instance, shown in Fig. 132, usually weighs about 
700 pounds, is not so long as the American bale, but a little 
thicker, but yet it has in its length about eleven ties, as com- 
pared with the six or seven of the American bale. It is 
usually a compact, square cornered, well covered package, and 
there is very little complaint from spinners regarding it. 

The Indian bale ( Fig. lo3 ) is still more clo.sely com- 
pressed, is considerably smaller than the American both in 
length and width, and has a tie usually running spirally 
round the bale, making eleven or twelve turns. This cotton 
is so closely compressed that it has to be " willowcd " before 
going into any ordinary cotton si>inning machinery. The 
weight of the bale of Indian cotton is usually about 400 
pounds. 



CHAP, v.] 



NfETHODS OF I'.ALINO COTTON. 



2G1 






05 . i 

< ■ ', 

1 §!•■ 



} 




•2G2 COTTON. [dlAl'. V. 

Brazilian cotton is made' up into one of tlic liulitcst of 
bales (Fiji". l'^>4), averajxino' ahmit 'iO'l |)(>iiii(ls ; the icasoii lor 
this is that it has to he carried on horse or mule l»ack to the 
seacoast. It (litlei's IVom other l)a]es in having vegetahle tics 
or bands; a trailing vine or llano is used for this jiur])osc. 
The covering is nsuall}' of coarse burlap bagging, considerably 
thinner than American bagging, and in some seasons consid- 
erable (piantities of cotton bagging are used to enclose the 
bale. Figs. b'U to lo4, inclusive, are used by courtesy of the 
United States Department of Agriculture. 

In a recent year the average gross weights of cotton bales 

were as under : 

1896-97. 

American ....... 502 

Brazilian ; 230 

Etryptian 735 

Indian 400 (estimated) 

Peruvian ....... 182 

• The tare of an American cotton bale usually amounts to 
about twenty })ounds, of which fourteen pounds is made u|) of 
bagging, and six p(»inids of iron lioo])s or ties. Ten hoo[)s 
usually weigh thirteen i)ounds. The total amount of tare on 
an Indian bah' is from twelve to seventeen pounds. On a, 
Brazilian bale the bagging does not weigh more than four 
pounds, and ten hooj)s or vegetable ties weigh nine jiounds. 

The word "tie" is usually used in America to indicate 
the ii'on band round the bale, which in F.ngland is called a 
"hoop," and the word "bagging" is usually used in the 
Ignited States to indicate the covering of the hale, which is 
often called the "tare" in Fugland : thus, ''bagging and ties" 
is the American ])hrase, synonymous with "tares and hoops" 
in the Fnglish rendering. 

In America, the s[)inner usually l)uys on the gross weight 
of the cotton : in JMigiand, the spinner always claims and 
obtains an allowance for this. In case of buying c-otton on 
C. I. F. and six j)er cent., he obtains an allowance of six ]k'V 



CHAP, v.] 



^fKTIIODS OF BALING COTTON. 



263 




Fig 132 Eiyptiai Cotrori Bale 



264 (.'(JTTOX. [chap. v. 

cent, for tares and hoops ; if the tares and hoops weigh more 
than this, up to seven per cent., he loses ; and if less, he gains, 
in the weight of raw cotton. 

This method of buying cotton is not in practice to so 
great an extent as is the method of buying cotton "on the 
spot." In this case, the spinner obtains an allowance of four 
pounds per hundred weight (112 pounds) for tare, the ties are 
counted, and he is allowed at the rate of thirteen pounds for 
each ten hoo})S. In addition to those two allowances, the 
European spinner is also allowed two pounds per bale for what 
is technically known as "double draft." 

" This liability of fire to live in the Ijales is the most seri- 
ous objection to the present system of baling American cot- 
ton," says Mr. W. INIuir of Liverpool. " When fire takes hold 
of the, old-style bales they will sometimes, weeks afterward, 
although they have been submerged in water for several days, 
again show signs of fire and cause an outbreak. This is not 
mere theor}^, but has come within my personal observation 
over and over again. This liability of American bales to 
carry fire is entirely owing to the system followed in America 
in compressing the bales. The compresses in the United 
States are as large, powerful, and as well fitted as any in the 
world, and are capable of pressing cotton to almost any den- 
sity. This is shown by the fact that in the compressing, the 
bales are i:)ressed to at least double the pressure at which the 
cotton is received in Liverpool. After compressing the cotton 
is allowed to rise or expand in the press to the height of the 
ties. This operation causes the bale to suck in a great quan- 
tity of air, and it is found that an American bale compressed 
in this manner is pne system of oxygen cells. The fire, when 
once it starts in one of these bales, follows the course of these 
air cells, and this is the reason why the fire is so difficult 
to put out. The best pressed bale known to underwriters is 
the Egy})tiau. An outl)reak of fire among Ijales of Egyptian 
cotton is unknown. The Egyptian bale is compressed to a 



CHAP, v.] 



METHODS OF BALING COTTON. 



2()." 




Luil-i^ 



Fig. 133. Iridiari Cottori Bale. 







Fig. 134. Braziliaq Cottori Bale. 



266 COTTON. [chap. v. 

densit}' of forty-five pounds to the cubic foot, and is held to 
that density by a sufficient number of steel bands (or ties), 
and there are four or five more bands around an Egyptian 
bale than around an American bale. We find that the density 
of the old-style compressed American bale as received here is 
only from eighteen to twenty-two pounds to the cubic foot. 
The difference in density arises not so much from the differ- 
ence in the method of compressing as in the fact that the 
com})ressed condition is maintained in the Egyptian bale by 
the superior method of banding the cotton, while in the Ameri- 
can bale the compressed density is relaxed in the banding. 
What I have said as to Egyptian bales applies very largely 
to cotton received from India." The writer consideres that 
eighteen to twenty-two pounds to the cubic foot for American 
bales named above is too low an estimate. 

One of the largest Liverpool cotton dealers, and one who 
is interested in the trade throughout the United States cotton 
belt, has made the following statement : — 

" Everybody in the cotton business over here realizes the 
need of an improvement in baling. I am thoroughly familiar 
with the handling and shipping of cotton in the United States. 
I am sure that the baling could be materially improved in 
America by having the present box presses at the ginhouses in 
the South made all of uniform size, which, I am told, could 
be done at the small cost of about |2.50 a press. If the bales 
were of a uniform size, they could be stowed in vessels and 
discharged therefrom without mutilation, whereas now, the 
bales being of irregular lengths, are often torn to economize 
space in the holds of the ships, and to stow more closely. 

A'ery considerable attention has been given during recent 
years by both capitalists and inventors to improvements in the 
system of baling American cotton. There is undoubtedly 
a very great field for improvement in this direction. The 
objects which some of the new baling systems claim to obtain 
are : — 



208 COTTON. [lllAP. V. 

Firstly, a greater compression of the material giving 
more i)ounds to the cubic foot, consequently saving ocean 
freight and enabling better rates to be given for land freight. 

Secondly, a lessened risk of fire, on account of the 
absence of oxygen in the bale, owing to the special" method of 
. compressing it. 

Thirdly, better ginning and removal of the foreign sub- 
stances usually found in cotton, and which generally remain 
to be removed by the picker or scutcher in the cotton mill. 

Fourthly, the formation of the cotton into a rolled sheet, 
which can be unwound at the primary cotton mill process. 
The first two advantages are the leading ones, and undoubt- 
edly have been attained by several of the new pi*ocesses of 
baling cotton. It is very much more doubtful whether either 
of the, third or fourth named advantages have yet been 
arrived at, or even whether any strong attempt has been 
made in some of the new methods, to remove more of the dirt 
than is usually customary in ginning and baling cotton. 

The reports of the mill men who have used these new 
bales, admit that the cotton is more compact, that there is less 
risk of fire, and that the new bales are easier to handle, but 
more complaints have been received that in the interioi's of 
the bales are found occasionally very hard cores, caused by 
the super-winding of the outer layers. While some companies 
are giving attention to improving the square bale, the most 
attention has been given to what is known as the round or 
cylindrical bale, and the above remarks a})ply to this style 
of bale. The cylindrical system of baling cotton has l)een 
considered of so much importance by capitalists that a few 
men with ample resources have formed a strong company to 
operate it. At present, however, a very small fraction of the 
American crop is baled on the new system, and further 
improvements will have to be made before it will l)e adopted 
to any large extent in the South or receive the unqualified 
approval of the cotton manufacturer. There is no doubt that 



CIIAI'. v.] 



MKTIIODS OF ]JALING COTTON. 



269 





F:g 136. Square crid Round Bales. 



270 



COTTON. 



[chap. v. 



if tlie cotton were not only ginned, but also passed through 
the process known in England as opening and scutching, or 
in America as opening and picking, in the neighborhood of 
the cotton field, that a very considerable saving would l)e 
effected in the economy of cotton manufacturing. At present 
there is a very considerable loss to manufacturers in careless 
baling and in the fact of having to pay freight on unneces- 
sary bagging and ties and on the foreign substances that are 
found in the cotton l>ales to the extent of five or six per cent., 



-''■HfftvtESTCAR Of Cotton tvERloftOto 

SHIPPEOOlRKTFMMIHtClHHoUStOf THt 

American Cottom Co. 

%0ll0UIIO6ftU<,VlUHlN& 



ILLIINOIS CENTRAL 



12938 




Fig. 137. Jiri flrqericaq Freigl^t Car Loaded Witli Rour\d Bales, 



as this freight might be obviously saved if cotton were })ut up 
in the form of a cleaned lap. Considerable modifications of the 
improved form of picker room lap would have to be made in 
order to insure satisfactor}^ transportation, but the effort is cer- 
tainly worth making. Figs. 135, 13(), 137 and loS, which 
are used by the courtesy of the United States Cotton] Manu- 
facturers' Association, are views taken in connection with 
making round bales. The}' are self explanatory^ and it will he 
seen that the cotton after beino; ginned is laid in a sheet, which 



CHAP, v.] 



^rl•:'^Il()l»s of liALixc; cotton. 



•Ill 




Fig. 138. Uqrolliqg a Rcuql li3:e at tj-^e Mill. 



■)7-> 



COTTON. [chap. v. 



is formed into a roll under lieavy pressure. These round or 
cylindrical Ijales are very compact, and a veiy much greater 
weight of cotton can be packed in an ordinary freight car, or 
steamship hold, than with the old style or so called square 
l)ale. 

General. Formerly, the English spinner relied very 
much on the name of the seaport from which the cotton was 
shipped to give him some idea of the quality of the staple, 
giving the preference to Xew Orleans cotton, but this is no 
longer reliable. Xot only is good cotton being raised in other 
than ^Mississippi river states by improved cultivation, but cot- 
ton shipped from Xew Orleans does not necessarily now mean 
that it has been grown near to, and ship})ed down, the Miss- 
issi})pi river, as formerly. The port of shipment ought not 
to warp the buyer's judgment either way. 

If forwarded by a relial»le railroad of good financial 
standing, the seller of the cotton in the states gets a through 
bill of lading to Liverpool, Bremen, or other ports, and this, if 
the railroad company is of good financial standing, and with 
the bill of exchange attached, is negotiable and excellent secu- 
rity. The bill of exchange is payable sixty days after pre- 
sentation, as a rule. The banker in the interior city will lend 
a large percentage of the value of the cotton on this security. 
The document is forwarded to X'^ew York, the financial centre 
of America, and dealt with in the usual course, being sent to 
the country of destination for acceptance, as ex23lained in the 
next cha})ter. 

From the moment of leaving the farm to arriving at the 
cotton mill in Xew England, or old England, .Japan or 
wherever its destination may be, the cotton bale is branded 
with a series of marks — marks of the fixrmer, the ginnery, 
the factor, the shipper, and numerous others — each having a 
meaning, though often unintelligible to the uninitiated, yet 
sufficient to trace false packing, bad ginning or fraud back to 
its source. Xot only so, but each l)ale on its sliipment from 



CHAI'. v.] 



METHODS OF nAI.I.\(i COTTON. 



273 



the })oint of origin has a })orfo rated hibel or tag attached with 
various particulars as to marks and weight. The stubs of 
these tags are detached at tlie compressing or shipping point, 
and as all labels bear a })rogressive number, track can be 
kept of bales in transit, just as easily as a bank can trace its 
drafts. 




274 COTTON. [chap. VI. 



CHAPTER \l. 

COTTON AS AN ARTICLE OF COMMERCE. COTTON MARKETS OF THE 

UNITED STATES. — THE NEW YORK AND NEW ORLEANS CON- 
TRACTS. MILL PURCHASES. LAND FREIGHT ON COTTON. 

THE EUROPEAN COTTON MARKETS. — LIVERPOOL. CONTINENTAL 

MARKETS. OCEAN FREIGHT. — IMPORTS OF EGYPTIAN AND 

PERUVIAN COTTON INTO THE UNITED STATES. — -COST OF RAISING 
COTTON. 

Cotton Markets of the United States. The largest crop 
in any of the states is raised in Texas, and this makes Houston 
one of the most important interior markets of the United 
States. In the season of 1896-97 over 500,000 bales of spot 
cotton were sold in this market, only excelled by the Gulf 
port, New Orleans, where 1,054,000 bales were sold in the 
same season. Memphis, on the Mississippi River, is a market 
of importance and is a great centre for long staple cotton ; in 
the season referred to above, 481,000 bales were handled there, 
and 294,000 at Augusta, Ga. ; 270,000 l^ales of spot cotton 
were sold in New York, and 205,000 bales in Savannah, Ga. 

The figures for the season of 1895-96 are somewhat 
different. New Orleans led with 864,000 bales of spot cotton 
sold ; Houston, Texas, was second with 425,000 ; Memphis 
third with 363,000 ; Augusta, Ga., fourth with 182,000, while 
New York was fifth with 168,000. 

Among other important cotton markets are Savannah, 
Georgia ; Charleston, South Carolina ; Mobile, Alabama ; St. 
Louis, Missouri ; Shreveport, Louisiana ; Yicksburg, Missis- 
sippi ; Columbus, Mississippi ; Macon, Georgia ; Columbus, 
Georgia ; Rome, Georgia ; Selma, Alabama ; Montgomery, 
Alabama ; Eufaula, Alabama ; and Nashville, Tennessee. 



CHAP. VI.] (OTTOX MARKETS OF TIIK UNITED STATES. 275 

The iiljove figures refer only to the sale of cotton in each 
of tlie markets, and the figures indicating the numher of 
bales exported from cities that are also seaports of course 
difi:er considerably from the above figures. 

The principal seaports from which cotton is shipped, 
given in the order of their importance, with the figures for 
the season of lSV)6-97, are as under: 

New Orleans, 1,084,000; Galveston, 1,231,000; New 
York, 087,000 ; Savannah, Georgia, 436,000 ; followed by 
Charleston, Sorth Carolina ; Boston, Massachusetts ; Wilming- 
ton, North Carolina ; Norfolk, ^'^irginia ; Baltimore, Maryland ; 
Mobile, Alabama ; Port Royal, South Carolina ; Brunswick, 
Georgia ; Newport News, Mrginia, and numerous minor ports. 

About the end of September or the beginning of October, 
numerous tramp steamers, in addition to the regular liners, 
steer their course for the cotton ports, and from that time 
onwards, to the end of January, the wharves are very busy. 
Galveston is the port which begins to receive the cotton first 
in the largest quantities, as it draws its supply from the Texas 
cotton fields, where the season is early, but by the end of 
September or beginning of October, cotton is pouring into New 
Orleans, Savannah and other ports, in some cases by tens of 
thousands of bales per day. A view at Fig. 139 is a scene on 
a cotton })latform in the port of Savannah, Georgia. 

Most of the cotton shipped from the above named ports 
has been consigned from interior points to northern mills or 
European merchants on through bills of lading, which are in 
a form approved by the permanent committee on uniform bills 
of lading, and contain the usual spaces for the entry of the 
marks, price, class of article, weight, port of shipment, port of 
destination, the consignee's address, with of course the innum- 
erable clauses in small type, Avhich no one ever reads, but 
which make a bill of lading seem a very formidable document. 

The charges for the European trade are usually entered in 
English sterling money, one pound sterling l)eing considered 



270 COTTON. [til A I'. VI. 

equal to four dollars aud eighty cents United States gold 
currency. The method of dealing with these documents 
through the hanks is mentioned elsewhere. 

The principal cotton markets of the United States are 
considered as having great influence on the prices of the staple, 
being second only to Liverpool in this respect. The prices of 
cotton for the whole country are })ractically adjusted by New 
York and New Orleans, the New York market being by far 
the more important as regards fatare contracts, while the more 
important for spot cotton is New Orleans. 

Spot cotton is sold in New York on the same terms as 
elsewhere in America, i. e., on gross weight, no allowance being- 
made for weight of bagging and ties. In this market the 
terms are cash on delivery, the buyer being obliged to take it 
within ten days after date of purchase. The buyer can 
demand it at his option any time within the ten days, and the 
seller must tlien deliver it. It is customary to present the bill 
on day of delivery and for the buyer to pay it the next day, 
but if the bill is delivered by eleven o'clock of day of delivery, 
the buyer pays it on the same day. 

In the season of 1895-96 only 1(;S,0()0 bales of spot cot- 
ton were sold in New York, while in the same year 56, 45 1,000 
bales were the sales of cotton for future delivery, and in the 
same season, the sales of cotton for future delivery in New 
Orleans were 15,498,700. The crop was thus sold ten times 
over in these two cities, entirely disregarding European spot 
and "future" sales, and spot sales in other American cities. 
It will be seen from this statement how largely the element of 
speculation is connected with the cotton market. 

Col. A. B. Shepperson, in his valuable statistical book 
entitled " Cotton Facts," in which tliere are probably more 
cotton statistics than in any other publication, gives the follow- 
ing details of contracts for cotton for future delivery, as dealt 
in at New York and New Orleans, and also of the methods 
of inspection and classification of cotton to be delivered on 
contracts for future deliverv in New York : — 



CHAP. VI.] COTTON MARKETS OK THE U.NITED STATES. 'Ill 



^ 
^ 




278 COTTON. [chap. vi. 

The New Orleans Contract differs from the New York 
Contract only in the following })articular.s, viz. : — 

It is not required that the cotton shall he classed and 
weighed under the auspices of the Cotton Exchange. 

When an original margin of |5 per bale has been depos- 
ited, the margins for variations in the market are paid directly 
to the party in whose favor the market turns. 

The New York Contract is for 50,000 pounds (gross) 
in about 100 bales of cotton, growth of tlie United States, to be 
delivered from a licensed warehouse in the port of Xew York 
during the month agreed. The delivery to be at seller's option 
upon tive days' notice to buyer, and from one warehouse. 

The cotton to be of any grade, from Good Ordinaiw to 
Fair, inclusive, and if stained, not below Low Middling. 

Price to be for ^Middling, with additions or deductions for 
other grades according to the rates of the Cotton Exchange 
existing on the afternoon of the day i)revious to the date of 
the notice of delivery. Certificates of inspection, classification, 
and weights issued by the " Inspector-in-Chief of Cotton " of 
the New York Cotton Exchange, to be tendered with the cot- 
ton and made the basis of settlement. ( For details see later 
pages. ) 

Payment to be made upon the day of delivery of ware- 
house receipts for the cotton. 

Either party to have the right to call for margin, as the 
variations of the market for like deliveries may warrant. 
An original margin up to $5 per bale, to remain in the Trust 
Company until settlement of the contract, may be required by 
either party, provided demand therefor is made within twenty- 
four hours after the transaction. The party demanding orig- 
inal margin must also deposit an equal amount himself All 
margins are required to be deposited in a Trust Company or 
Bank. 

The methods of inspection and classification of cotton to 
be delivered on contracts for future delivery in New York are 
as follows : — 



CHAP. VI.] TIIK Xi:\V YOltK COXTKACT. 279 

On the Ist September, 1887, the new plan, for the insi)ec- 
tion, sampling, weighing and classing of cotton to be delivered 
npon contracts for future delivery in Xew York, went into 
operation, and the following are its provisions as in force at 

present. 

The inspection, sampling, weighing and classing of all 
cotton to be delivered upon contracts for future delivery is 
done under tlie auspices of the New York Cotton Exchange 
and under the supervision of the inspector-in-chief of cotton, 
an officer appointed by the Exchange to take entire sui)er- 
vision and direction of these matters. 

Cotton intended for delivery upon "contracts" is in- 
spected, sampled and weighed, under the personal supervision 
of an assistant inspector of cotton, by samplers and weighers 
duly licensed by the Exchange. No sampler can be employed 
who is in the service of any one interested in the cotton to be 

sampled. 

The samples are submitted to the classification committee 
of the Cotton Exchange, who determine the grade, subject, 
however, to a revision by that committee upon appeal by any 
party interested. The decision reached upon this revision is 

finai. 

Not less than two members of the classification committee 
are competent to act upon an original classification, and upon 
an appeal from their decision not less than four members of 
the entire committee of five must act. Their decision is final. 

The members of the classification committee are salaried 
officers of the Cotton Exchange, and are not permitted to be 
engaged, directly or indirectly, in any business connected with 
cotton. They cannot, therefore, possibly have any interest 
whatever in the cotton submitted to them for classification. 
The cotton is classed bale by bale, and a certificate is given by 
the secretary of the classification committee to the inspector- 
in-chief, stating how many bales there are of each grade in 
each lot of class mark. 



280 COTTOX. [chap. VI. 

After cotton has been sampled and weighed, negotiable 
warehouse receipts, stating the marks of bales and lot num- 
bers, are issued to holders of cotton, no receipt to be for more 
than about 100 bales of 50,000 pounds. Receipts to be let- 
tered or numbered by each warehouse, and no two receipts to 
be alike. 

The inspector-in-chief of cotton stamps on these receipts 
the weight of the cotton in accordance with the records of his 
office. He also issues a certificate stating the number of bales 
of each grade in accordance with the decision of the classifica- 
tion committee. 

The date of expiration of a certificate is one year from 
the date of inspection of the cotton. 

Negotiable warehouse receipts, accompanied by the in- 
spectar-in-chief 's certificate of grade, as above described, will 
constitute a good delivery in fulfilment of contracts for cotton 
sold for future delivery. 

The weight, as stamped by the inspector-in-chief on the 
warehouse receipt, shall be accepted by all parties for one year 
from date of weighing, subject to an allowance of one-half 
pound per bale per month or fraction of a month. 

The cotton exchange ins])ection fund is responsible for 
the correctness of the certificates issued by the inspector-in- 
chief as to the grade of the cotton certified to, Init the claim 
must be made within one year after tlie date of the certificate 
U})on which it is based and before the cotton leaves the port of 
New York. All liability ceases at the expiration of one year 
from the date of the certificate, or when the cotton leaves the 
port. 

The New Yorlv Cotton Exchange does not assume, and 
will not be liable for, any claim growing out of tlie issue of 
certificates of grade by the inspector-in-chief of cotton, but 
such claims will be paid out of the cotton exchange inspec- 
tion fund, — a fund derived from the fees received for inspec- 
tion. Xeithcr the Cotton Exchange nor the insi)ection fund 



CHAP. VI.] THE NEW YORK CONTKACT. 



281 




Fig. 140. Thie Ne-W YorK Cottor| Excb,ar\ge. 



282 COTTON. [CIIAP. VI. 

will be liable tor loss in weight, it being considered that the 
allowance of one-half pound per bale per month will cover 
the shrinkage. A view of the New York Cotton Exchange 
is given at Fig. 140. 

Mill Purchases of Cotton. The cities of Boston and 
Fall River are ini})ortant markets for cotton, as many of 
the southern factors liave agents or branch offices at these 
points. In the fall, the salesmen of these houses are very 
busy, together with special agents who are sent from the 
cotton belt, in offering cotton to the manufacturers, who buy 
in large quantities from October until iVIarch. The treasurers 
of the mills are usuall}^ the cotton buyers, and they select cot- 
ton from the .samples which are shown and which have been 
sent from the cotton factor, showing the style of cotton that 
he is offering. Practically the wdiole of the cotton required 
for a year is purchased in the months named above, and very 
frequently it is shipped north immediately after the sale takes 
place. Arrangements are occasionally made for the shipment 
of so many bales per month. Money can be borrowed at very 
much lower rates of interest in Xew England than in the 
South, and consequently it is much cheaper to carry or hold 
cotton in the North, as in most cases the parties hold it on 
behalf of the banks that have loaned the money to enable 
them to carry it. For this reason most of the lavge cotton 
manufacturing establishments of New England have very 
large .store houses connected with their mill buildings, and the 
winter is usually a very busy time in receiving this cotton, 
weighing, sampling and storing it for future use. 

The terms on which northern manufacturers buy cotton 
are very simple. Usually the cotton is sold on cash terms, no 
discount being allowed and no allowance being made for bags 
or ties, the gross weight being invoiced. The cotton is usually 
purchased delivered in Boston or an equivalent point, the 
freight rate allowance being made by the shipper equal to the 
amount that the manufacturer has to pay for the freight on 



CHAP. VI.] 



MILL PCKCHASES. 



283 




2<S4 COTTOX. [chap. VI. 

ariival of the cotton. It will be seen that the above sv.stein 
requires a very large stock of cotton to be kept at the mills for 
a considerable portion of the year. 

While the above system is a general one, there are special 
cases which arise and which require that cotton shall be pur- 
chased as required, and in these cases it is not umisual for 
manufjicturers to send mail orders to reliable southern houses 
who know what grade of cotton they are accustomed to 
use, and specify the length of stai)le, grade and style of cotton, 
leaving it to the southern merchant to ship suitable material. 

It is said that the practice of sending salaried employees 
of the mill to the southern cotton market in the fall to remain 
there three or four months to purchase cotton daily from local 
dealers is growing in ftivor with the larger New England 
mills, as is also the ])ractice of sending a salaried buyer 
directly from Liverpool or Bremen for a portion of the year to 
buy cotton directly from the local store-keeper in the cotton 
belt, for the English or German cotton merchant. 

Cotton for the New England and Canadian mills is trans- 
ported in about equal portions by land and by sea. 

The maximum total takings in any one year are given in 
the figures for the season of 1S04-95, when 2,120,000 bales 
were received by northern and Canadian spinners. The 
greatest weight of this movement in each year is in the 
months of November and December, especially November, 
and dwindles to insignificant figures in June, July and 
August. In the season a])Ove named almost exactly half of 
the total takings were carried overland amounting to 1,008,000, 
leaving 1,002,000 taken from the ports. 

The following season, 1895-96, rather a large pro})ortion 
was taken overland, and the entire takings amounted to 1,<>7.'3,- 
000 bales. This, of course, is exclusive of cotton of other 
growth, which is used to some extent, especially Egyptian and 
Peruvian cottons. 

Owing to the continued increase of mills in the cotton 
growing states, a larger proportion of the crop is left in these 



ciiAi'. VI.] MI LI, rntciiASES. 285 

states each year. Altliough cotton inanufacturiii<; l>y water 
})0\ver lias been carried on in the sonthern states for the last 
fifty years, and by hand from the earliest date of settlement 
in Virginia, it was not nntil the year 1884 that the number of 
spindles exceeded 1,000,000 in the whole of the South; by 
1893 a total of 2,000,000 had been exceeded, and it is i)rob- 
able that the year 1898 will see that a total of 3,000,000 has 
been reached. 

It will be seen that the growth of the cotton manufactur- 
ing industry in the South of late years has been very rapid, 
and as most of the mills are on coarse numbers, the numljer 
of bales used in the South is a point of considerable importance 
for the consideration of the cotton statistician, it being esti- 
mated that in the season of 1896-97 999,000 bales were 
consumed by southern mills. Several views of these southern 
cotton mills are given in this volume, including Figs. 50, 119, 
141, 142, 143, 144, and 163. Figs. 141 to 144, inclusive, are 
used by the consent of the Saco & Pettee Machine Shop, of 
Newton Upper Falls, Mass. 

The largest consumption of cotton in America is in the 
state of Massachusetts. The consumption of cotton other than 
American in the United States is rapidly increasing from a 
comparative point of view. Col. Shepperson, in the publica- 
tion named above, gives the imports of Egyjitian cotton into 
the United States for the season ending August 31st : 

1889-90 10,470 bales 

1890-91 23,790 " 

1891-92 27,739 " 

1892-93 • 42,475 " 

1893-94 33,(i06 " 

1894-95 69,418 " 

1895-96 09,220 " 

189(1-97 79,385 " 

Land Freight on Cotton. When the cotton leaves the 
hands of the farmer, the ginner, the compressor, or the mer- 
chant, it may be intended for many different destinations. 



286 COTTON. [chap. VI. 

First of all, it has to be conveyed to the point from which it 
will be shipped to the conntr}' in which it will be manuftic- 
tured. About three-fourths of the cotton is carried first of all 
to a seaport. The cost of getting cotton from the inland mar- 
ket town to the coast may be judged from the following freight 
rates current in 1897 in Georgia : 

Macon to Savannah, 108 miles, thirty-four cents per hun- 
dred to the ship side or .17d. per pound. 

Atlanta to Savannah, 294 miles, forty-three cents per 
hundred to the ship side or .21d. per pound. 

Rome to Savannah, 371 miles, forty-five cents per hun- 
dred to the ship side or .22d. per pound. 

Columbus to Savannah, 203 miles, forty-five cents per 
hundred to the ship side or .22d. per pound. 

Out of this the railroad compan}' has to compress the 
cotton without charge, the usual cost of compressing in 
Georgia being eight and one-half cents per hundred pounds. 

A considerable amount of cotton is carried to the seaports 
by river steamers. In the case of the Mississippi River, cot- 
ton is carried from Memj^his to New Orleans, 738 miles, for 
$1.00 per bale. The cost of drayage in New Orleans is twelve 
cents per bale, and compressing fifty cents per Ijale, making a 
total of thirty-two and one-half cents per hundred pounds, or 
about 5-32d. per pound, to get cotton to the ship side from 
Memphis. The rate from Memphis is less than that charged 
from points nearer to New Orleans, Memphis being a competi- 
tive point. For instance, the distance between Greenville and 
New Orleans is 482 miles, but the rate from ])oints between 
Memphis, Tennessee, and Greenville, INIississippi, to New 
Orleans, Louisiana, is $1.25 per bale. The rate for cotton 
conveyed from any point between Greenville and the mouth 
of the Red River, including Vicksburg, Mississippi, 362 miles, 
and Natchez, 278 miles, to New Orleans, is $1.00 per bale; 
below the Red River to New Orleans, seventy-five cents. The 
distance between the mouth of the Red River and New 



CHAP. VI.] 



LAND FrvEIGHT ON COTTON. 



287 




288 rOTTOX. [ciiAi". VI. 

()i-l(";uis is l'.)S miles. ( ot'ton is lainU'd in New Oi-lcans at the 
e(ttt(»ii \vliai'ves of the river steamers. 

A lai'uc ((iiaiitity is shijjped overland for the use of New 
JMigland and ( anadian mills, and in some eases ship|tcd from 
Oalveston, ('harleston, or other southern seaports by boat. 

The European Cotton Markets. l>y fai' the lai'oer j)or- 
tion of the American crop is destined for iMiropean mar- 
kets, the principal one, of course, bein^' Livei'pool, while 
a largely increasing business is being done at the i)oi-ts of 
Ih-emen in Germany, Havre iu Franee, and Genoa in Italy, 
and shipments are also made in smaller (piantities to S[)anish, 
Indian, and .laj)anese points. The i.ivei'pool market, from its 
convenient geographical position, has long been th(^ leading 
centre for the distribution of Amei'ican cotton to the lOuro- 
j)ean manufacturing disti'icts. In this markt't, tlu're are sel- 
dom less than r)()0,0()0 bales in stock, and at times a stock 
is lield ai)})roacliing one and onedialf million bales, not only 
of all varieties of American cotton, but of the fleecy lint from 
every cotton producing country in the world, iiududing Egyj)- 
tian. South American, Indian, Ghinese, Japanese, West Indian, 
and African cottons. 

The immense docks, extending for a distance' (»f many 
miles along the river front, are utilized to a very large extent 
by cotton steamers, and the innnense warehouses equipped 
with every conceivable appliance Ibr convenient handling and 
safe storage of cotton, are not the least interesting of the com- 
mercial sights of Liverpool. 

All, or almost all, tlie business in raw cotton in Liverpool 
is dont' under the control of the Liverpool Cotton Association, 
which is a combination of the older Cotton Brokers Associa- 
tion and Cotton Exchange. It is an association of not more 
than ()0() mend)ers, consisting lai'gely of cotton l)rokers, known 
either as buying brokers or selling brokers, some cond)ining 
the two occui)ations. The articles of the association do not 
necessarily require that the active member of the association 



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CHAP. VI.] THE EUROPEAN COTTON >rARKETS. 289 

shall be engaged in handling cotton, but as the membership 
of the association gives special advantages to the members for 
dealing in cotton in the city of Liverpool, the majority of 
them are so engaged. 

The association is managed by a board of directors, with 
various subsidiary committees, and besides other work of the 
association is, first, the preparation of a daily report of the 
prices of cotton in the port of Liverpool, the preparation of a 
number of estimates throughout the day of the business being 
done, with a report at the end of the day of the actual turn 
over of cotton, the advance or reduction of the price of the 
different grades and growths of cotton by a committee which 
meets daily at twelve o'clock and decides on the necessity or 
otherwise of making any alterations in the price. 

The association also controls arbitrations as to cotton con- 
tracts, conducts a clearing house business, issuing weekly 
reports and statistics of the cotton movement, and annually 
checks up the actual stock of cotton in Liverpool. A speci- 
men of a recent weekly report is inserted with this chapter of 
the book, containing much valuable information. Although 
there has been a considerable change of late years in the 
method of handling cotton, it is still customary for the mer- 
chant who imports the cotton to em})lo\' what are known as 
selling brokers, who offer the cotton on behalf of the mer- 
chant, and in very many cases advance money on the cotton, 
or, as it is termed, finance the smaller merchants. The cotton 
is offered by the selling broker to the buying broker, who is 
the chief feature of the Liverpool cotton business. The buying 
broker is really the representative of the cotton spinner and 
manufacturer, although occasionally he acts as a selling broker 
but does not advertise this fact to his spinners. Each buys 
for a number of spinners, and either from the force of habit 
or from financial reasons, the spinner generally confines his 
cotton buying to one, or, at the most, two firms of buying 
brokers. The bulk of EnoHsli cotton mills are situated within 



290 COTTON. [c'irAP. VI. 

sixt}' miles of Liver[)Ool, and the hiiyur of cotton for the mill 
usualh' sets apart one morning during the week for the }nir- 
pose of buj'ing cotton, and, having notified his broker, there 
is awaiting him in the Liverpool office, scores, even hundreds, 
of samples of cotton representing bales lying in the port of 
Liverpool. These samples are the brown j)a])er parcels with 
open ends that are so familiar to the visitor to Liverpool, and 
are carried by the messengers in the employ of the different 
brokers from one office to another. 

Li the course of a couple of hours, the spinner is able to 
examine the piles of samples which represent very many 
thousand bales, and to make a selection. The samples are 
followed from office to office by energetic salesmen repre- 
senting the selling broker or the importing merchant, if he is 
his own broker. The last hour of the spinner's visit is de- 
voted to making the best deal he can through his buying bro- 
ker with the selling broker. It is very frequently the case 
that cotton purchased in the morning is forwarded in the after- 
noon and delivered at the mill with })ossibly a portion of it 
put in work within the next twenty-four hours. The con- 
tiguity to the mills of a large market with such an immense 
stock of cotton is of great advantage to the spinner at times 
when he does not wish to hold much cotton, nor to have a 
large quantity l)ouglit ahead. 

"When cotton is bought as above named, it is spoken of as 
spot cotton and is usually understood to be in the warehouse. 
It is subject to })ayment in ten days from the date of jnirchase 
and is invoiced to the spinner at the net weight, arrived at by 
deducting in the first instance, two pounds per bale known as 
double draft, then the bands or ties on the bale are counted 
and allowance made at the rate of thirteen pounds for each ten 
ties. From the remaining weight, four pounds per hundred 
weight of 112 pounds is allowed for the bagging, known in 
England as tares. A discount of one and one-half per cent, is 
allowed from this bill. 



CI I A I'. VI.] 



TIIK 1-; I •ROPE AN COTTON MAKKKTS. 



291 









o 




292 COTTON. [ciiAi-. VI. 

Forwarding charges from l.iverj )()()! are calculated at a 
shilling ( twenty -five cents) per bale in case of five bales or 
less, nine pence ( eighteen cents ) per bale on from six to ten 
bales, and six pence (twelve cents) per bale on lots consisting 
of over ten bales. 

Cotton is occasionally purchased ex-quay on spot terms, 
and in this case the buyer occasionally gets it at somewhat 
reduced prices, as the seller saves the cost of warehousing the 
cotton. 

Cotton is purchased in Liverpool under the rules of the 
Liverpool Cotton Association on other systems than the above 
named, viz: (1st) under contract "for delivery forward," 
( 2nd ) C. I. F. and six per cent., ( 3rd ) " futures." 

The method of buying on deliver}^ forward contracts may 
either, be based on the delivery of cotton of a certain mark or 
marks, which run regularly in the Liverpool market and are 
recognized by the brokers, or maybe a contract based on the 
delivery of cotton equal to a certain type sample, which is sealed 
when the contract is made and the seal is not broken until the 
cotton has been delivered, when tlie ty})e is opened in the 
presence of the buying and selling l)rokers. This method is 
very convenient for the manuflicturer as he is thus enabled to 
cover sales of yarn or cloth and know exactly what class of cot- 
ton he may expect to have delivered to him. The month or 
months in which delivery is to be made is usually stated, and 
it is at the option of the seller whether the cotton shall be 
tendered for delivery the first of the inonth or the last of the 
month, or any time between. It is usually customary to make 
these contracts in multiples of 100 bales, with special clauses 
in the contract restricting deliveries to not less than fifty bales. 
After the cotton has been tendered and accepted, it is subject 
to payment in accordance with the Liverpool spot terms as 
previously named. 

The system of C. L F. and six per cent., which rep- 
resents the co.st of insurance and freight, is the svstem on 



CIlAI'. VI.] 'JIIK KII.'orKAX ((tT'lOX MAKKK'IS. 20o 

Aviiicli (-(jttoii is lH)U^lit ])y the Enolisli oi- CDiitiiiciital manu- 
facturer, to be equal to certain sami)le.s and to he sliipped from 
a named American or other port at a named time. Tlie 
seller provides the cotton, pays insurance and IVcioht, thus 
pi-actically coiitractiii^- to turn it over t(» the huycr in the poi't 
of J^iverpool on hoard ship; all succeeding- charges, such as 
dock and town dues and porterage, are paid by the buyer. No 
discount is allowed from the invoice, but six per cent, is 
allowed from the gross weight of the cotton for ties and lag- 
ging. As a rule, bagging and ties do not weigli six jjer cent, 
of the gross weight, and this is a gain to tlie spinner. In 
case of the tare exceeding six })er cent, the spinnci' is allowed 
no redress unless it exceeds seven per cent. The spinner 
practicalh^ puts himself in the position of an ini})orter ; he is 
to accept the bill usually dated sixty days from the date on 
which the cotton leaves the American port. Tnder this sys- 
tem there is some risk of a buyer not getting exactly the 
quality he stipulated for, as while the cotton is on tlie quay, 
only twenty-four hours are allowed in which to settle disputes. 

This method of purchasing cotton is largely resorted to 
as a speculation in those seasons when the spinner anticipates 
a gradual increase in the price of cotton as the season 
advances. Almost all C. I. F. business is done early in the 
season . 

At the })ricc of four pence, the difference to the spinner 
between C. I. F. and six per cent, and Liverpool terms, with a 
fair weight outturn, is only about 1-1'! d., viz. : 

Discount . . . 1] per cent. 

Landing charges . . j << ■• 

Less rebate on prepayment . . 01 per cent. 
Brokerage not charged on 

C. L F m " " 

Net .... !{ per cent. = 0.07 pence or .14c. per 11). 

In addition the spinner has the advantage of lighter 
tares when he buys on (\ I. F. terms. It is not advisable to 



294 COTTON. [ciiAi'. VI. 

dispense with the services of a broker in order to save one-half 
per cent., as suggested above. Employing a broker, the saving 
is .05 pence or .Ic. per pound. 

Another method of purcliasing cotton, wliich is only used 
as a rule for hedging or speculative purposes, and seldom as a 
means of purchasing actual cotton, is what is known as 
" futures." In this case, the buyer purchases cotton in multiples 
of 100 bales at the price supposed to be the price of low^ mid- 
dling American, and may specify in which month the cotton 
shall be delivered, the price varying according to the opinion 
of the market as to the price of cotton daring the month 
named. The scale of prices for several months ahead is pub- 
lished many times daily by the Liverpool Cotton Association, 
the prices for different months being given in terms of G-lths 
of a penu}'. This is the favorite method of purchasing cotton 
for speculation, as the transaction may be closed by selling- 
out the cotton purchased, and receiving or paying the credit 
or debit balance which remains after the adjustment of the 
price. As before stated, the contract is based on low middling 
cotton. This low-middling clause was originally inserted as a 
protection to spinners, who, it was then fairly argued, bought 
futures for their own use, and not on pure speculation or as a 
cover. This is not now the case. It is most exceptional for a 
spinner to use contract cotton, even should, by a rare chance, 
the cotton tendered be of his exact cjuality. He nineteen 
times out of twenty prefers to and does close his contract, buying 
actual cotton on the spot or equal to sample for delivery as 
required, which latter system is now almost universally adopted. 

Class and color ( but not staple and style ) are alone 
taken into account in the arbitrations held for ordinary arrival 
contracts, the consequence being that values of Uplands, 
Texas, and Gulf or Orleans are now all quoted alike, the nor- 
mal difference being fully one-eighth of a peimy per pound. 

The department of the Liverpool Cotton Exchange, 
devoted to the sale of " futures," is one of the most interesting 
sections of the building. 



CHAP. VI.] 



THE EUROPEAN COTTON MARKETS. 



295 



H 

XT 




296 COTTON. [rirAi>. vr. 

The sensitiveness of the market, the rapidity witli which 
it responds to the shghtest influence at liome or abroad wliich 
may affect the i)rice of cotton ; the eagerness of buyers and 
sellers to gain an advantage of even half a point, or l-128tli 
of a penn}^ per pound, the immense quantity sold in this 
manner, all tend to make it a most interesting picture com- 
mercially. One feature of the Liverpool market is that a 
tremendous business is done in futures in this way without 
the excessive noise and hubbul) in the same line of business 
in the New York Cotton Exchange, which latter is only ex- 
ceeded by the New York Stock Exchange or the Paris Bourse. 

Continental Markets. In addition to the market of Liver- 
pool, the following large cotton markets have been established 
in various parts of Europe, more particularly for Egyptian, 
American, and Lidian cottons : Bremen, in Germany ; Havre, 
in France ; Genoa, in Ital}^ ; Trieste, in Austria. 

Bremen is the most important of these continental Euro- 
pean ports. The terms of sale, arbitration, and so on are 
practically the same as in Liverpool, in most cases having 
been based on the Liverpool system. The spinners of each of 
the countries named buy considerable quantities of cotton at 
the above named markets, but they still, to a large extent, 
purchase in Liverpool. Formerly the whole of the cotton 
used in the European continental countries was purchased in 
Liverpool, but the tendency now is towards purchasing in 
Bremen and Havre. 

The following statement of the method of handling cotton 
in Milan, Italy, ma}^ be taken as a description of cotton dealing 
in other European continental countries. Cotton is bought 
by Italian spinners through brokers, from merchants in Amer- 
ica, England, India or Egypt. Each merchant has an agent 
in Milan, Genoa, or other cities. In Milan there are about 
forty-eight agents of diflerent firms in Liver})Ool, New York, 
New Orleans, and so on, and the spinner deals with this 
agent, who usually receives telegraphic instructions from his 



CHAP. VI.] CONTINENTAL MAK'K'ETS. 297 

tirni, and tlie s})inner offers, or accei)ts oHbr.s by cal)l(', tliroiigh 
the agent. Cotton is sliipi)e(l against docutnents, that is to 
say, an invoice, a bill of lading, and l)ill of exchange are sent 
to the bank of the spinner. The bank retains or negotiates 
the bill of exchange after it has been accepted ])y the spinner, 
and then sends the other documents to him, so that he can 
claim his cotton. The merchant is thus protected, but the 
spinner is frequently indebted to the bank for an over-draft. 
The agent, previously mentioned, has a commission, generally 
of one-half per cent. In England, Germany, and France, 
cotton is admitted free of duty, but it is dutiable in Eussia, 
and also in Italy. The Italian Government imposes a duty 
of three lire per 100 kilos, equal to fift^^-seven cents, or 28Jd. 
per 222 pounds on the raw cotton received into the country 
from any other country. This duty was levied by a Royal 
letter on the 10th of December, 1894, and recognized as law 
by the Parliament, in July, 1895. An additional dut}^ of ten 
centesimi per hundred kilos, equal to Id. or two cents, was 
levied in the year 1896, as a charge for taking statistics. Con- 
sequently, raw cotton pays on entry to Italy a duty of 3.10 
lire per hundred kilos, equal to .136 pence, or .272 cents per 
pound. 

Ocean Frefg:ht. The cost of carrying cotton across the 
Atlantic is very low compared with the land freights of the 
United States. The following figures were supplied by the 
Louisville and Nashville R. R. Co., referring to the season of 
1896-97. The highest rates paid ocean carriers this season on 
cotton shipments were : — 

To Liverpool, /^ <i + 5 per cent, primage per pound. 
" Bremen, xV ^ " " " 

" Havre, ^''^ d " " " 

" Genoa, H d 

And the lowest rates : — 

To Liverpool, ^j d + 5 per cent, primage per pound. 
" Bremen, f^ '^ " " " 

" Havre, /j f' 
" Genoa, /o d " " " 



298 



COTTON. 



[tllAP. VI. 



\8S5. 



VS TftefiSU/iY DePfiff-TMrNT 




(Mcn./^LoyAj'^^ C 



CHtEF OF BVRE/tU 



Fig. 145. DiagraiT\ of tt)e flrqericari Cottoq Crop, Fiscal Year of 1895, 
ir\ Bales by States, riurqbered oq opposite page. 



CHAl". VI.] 



OCEAN SHIPMENT. 



299 



\87a 




Fig. 146. Diagrairi of tl~ie ilrqerican Cottor\ Crop, Fiscal Year of 1870, 
ir\ Bales by States. 



STATES. 



1870. 



1. Alabama .... 

2. Arkansas .... 
A. Florida and all others 

3. Georgia 

4. Louisiana .... 

5. Mississippi .... 

6. North Carolina . . 

7. South Carolina . . 

8. Tennessee . . . . « 

9. Texas 



1,000,000 

850,000 

60,000 

1,300,000 
600,000 

1,200,000 
405,000 
800,000 
350.000 

3,276,000 



bales 



420,482 bales 
247,968 
42,937 
473,934 
350,832 
564,938 
144,935 
221,500 
181,842 
350,628 



300 COTTON. [ciiAP. VI. 

The above shows a greater fluctuation in rates than 
has been known for some seasons, the average of the above, 
inchiding primage, being : — 

Liverpool, .205 d per pound, or 41 cents per 100. 

Bremen, .240 d " or 49-3 " 

Havre, .2378 d " or 47^ " " 

Genoa, .2625 d " or 52.V " 

Out of the above rates the shipper pays thirty-five cents 
a bale for loading the cotton into the vessel, which is equal to 
.035d per pound, or seven cents per hundred. The above 
rates are from New Orleans to Europe. The rates from small 
ports, even though they may be situated nearer to Europe, are 
sometimes higher, in consequence of less competition for the 
freight among the steamship companies. 

Imports of Cotton into the United States. The imports of 
cotton into the United States are not very large, and are prac- 
tically only of Egyptian and Peruvian growths. 

During the past two years a few bales of Chinese, East 
Indian, and African cotton have been imported to be used by 
woolen manufacturers as a cheap substitute for Peruvian cot- 
ton, the entire quantity being only about 150 bales. A few 
bales of other growths have been brought to New York, 
Boston, and San Francisco for transhipment to Europe and 
Canada. 

Egyptian and Peruvian Imports. The following table 
gives the imports of Egyptian and Peruvian cotton, and the 
quantity of American Sea Island cotton taken by American 
spinners for each year (ending August 31st) since 1889 : 

All of the Peruvian cotton imported has been of the kind 
known as " rough Peruvian," and very few bales of it have 
ever found their way into a cotton mill. Rough Peruvian is 
a peculiar kind of cotton, having such close resemblance to 
wool that its sole use is for mixing with wool in the manufac- 
ture of underwear, hosiery, and cloth, which are all sold to 
retail buyers as being made entirely of wool. The object of 



CHAP. VI.] 



EGYPTIAN AND PERIVIAN T^[P()KTS. 



301 



its iLse is to cheapen the cost of the goods. Roiigli Peruvian 
cotton does not compete in the least possible degree with any 
description of American cotton in an}" market of the world. 
Its price has no relation whatever to the price of other descrip- 
tions of cottons, but is influenced l)v the price of wool and 
the supply of Peruvian cotton. 



SEASON OF 



1889-90 
1890-91 
1891-92 
1982-9;; 
1893-94 
1894-95 
1895-96 
1896-97 



^ c 






Bales. 
10,470 
23,790 
27,759 
42,475 
33,606 
59,418 
69,220 
79,385 



Bales. 
9,500 
10,515 
13.000 
24,000 
19,000 
24,000 
24,608 
16,604 



Bales. 
19,124 
26,602 
32.279 
22,927 
23,516 
34,765 
40,092 
41,676 



The figures are from custom house returns. For seasons previous the 
importations were much less. The present weight of Egyptian bales is 
about 724 pounds net, while Peruvian bales weigh about 175 pounds. 

American imports of Egyi)tian cotton are now used in 
about the following manner : 

Thirty-five per cent, for Balbriggan underwear and 
hosiery. 

Thirt^'-five per cent, for fine cotton goods requiring a. 
cotton of fine, strong and long fibre and absolute freedom 
from " nits " or other imperfections. 

Thirty per cent, for sewing cotton and for fine yarns to 
be u.sed in "silk and cotton," and also "worsted and cotton" 
goods ; also for .some other special purposes to a limited 
extent. 

Figures 145, 14G, 147, and 148 are from "Cotton in Com- 
merce," by permission of Latham, Alexander & Co., of New 
York. 



302 



COTTON. 



[chap. VI. 




It S> cllca.P*vlvi ©na<Vl/t»«<,«l 'J'.ii.iou of a<t<vU»lit 



Fig. 147. Export of ilrqericaq Cottoq, Fiscal Year of 1895, 



CHAP. VI.] EGYPTIAN AND PERUVIAN IMPORTS. 



303 



(?-l<Ut ^iVtOpA 1,250,978 P 




Fig. 148. Exports of arT|ericaT\ Cottor|, Fiscal Year of 1867. 



304 



(COTTON. 



[ciiAr. VI. 



Cost of Raising Cotton. The following is an accurately 
kept account of the expense of raising cotton on a twenty-two 
acre farm in the upland region of North Carolina for two 
consecutive seasons. 

The record for the first season was : 



Preparing ground, planting seed, putting in fertilizers, bringing 

to a stand, hoeing, and cultivating 
Cash cost of fertilizers 
Picking 21,984 pounds of seed cotton 
Interest on capital .... 

Taxes 

Bagging and ties .... 
Transportation 



Less the value of the seed 
Cost 



I 99.65 
110.97 
98.01 
72.00 
8.00 
14.00 
10.00 

$412.63 
56.25 

$356.38 



Product per acre, seed cotton 999.2 lbs. 

Product per acre, lint 322.1 lbs. 

Total crop, baled cotton 7087 lbs. 

Cost of lint cotton, per pound 5.3 cents. 

The results of the second season were as follows : 

Preparing ground, putting in fertilizers, planting, bringing to a 

stand, hoeing, and cultivating $ 97.34 

Forty bushels of seed at 124 cents per bushel .... 5.00 

Cash cost of fertilizers 92.12 

Blacksmith's work 3.00 

Picking 22,013 pounds of seed cotton 90.69 

Bagging and ties 15.00 

Interest on capital . 72.00 

Taxes 8.00 

Transportation 10-00 

$393.15 

Less the value of the seed 56.25 

Cost $336.90 



Product per acre, seed cotton 1000.6 lbs. 

Product per acre, lint 332.6 lbs. 

Total crop, baled cotton 7317 lbs. 

Cost of lint cotton, per pound 4.6 cents. 



'M 






WU\ 



'I- 
i < 







m 



w- 



f T- 



,fl 



^s 



\ 



t 




306 COTTON. [chap. VII. 

The average cost of the cotton for the two seasons was 
4.05 cents per })Oun(h This inchided all ex})enses excepting the 
price of baling, which would bring the cost up to five cents 
or two pence half-penny per pound. The rent and similar 
expenses were charged as interest on capital, the land, im|)le- 
ments, stock, etc., being owned by the farmer. There was, how- 
ever, no provision made for the deterioration of the plant and 
loss of stock, which would be covered by a small fraction per 
pound. It will be observed from an examination of the fore- 
going statement that the cost per pound of raising cotton 
must depend upon the yield per acre ; that the product per 
acre beyond the amount necessary to pay expenses is the 
measure of the planter's profit, and that the expenses incident 
to raising the crop are the same when yielding 500 pounds of 
seed, cotton as when yielding 1,500 pounds, less the cost of 
picking, which is fully counter-balanced by the gain in seed. 

The cost of growing cotton is an interesting problem, and 
statistics give almost any result on this point. 

A farmer often claims to be able to prove that his cotton 
costs him seven, eight, or nine cents per pound. Many 
southern and other authorities claim that cotton costs nothing 
to raise, as it can Ije made a surplus crop, that is to say by the 
skilful management of his crops, the farmer can raise suffi- 
cient food, both animal and vegetable, for himself and his 
family, sufficient feed for his stock, and sufficient corn to sell, 
to provide clothing and other necessities, leaving a consider- 
able quantity of cotton as a surplus crop. This argument is 
of course untenable, as there is no doubt that cotton costs 
something to raise, however little, if all the expenses of rent 
and labor are taken into account. From very carefully com- 
piled information, collected in many different states, the 
writer has come to the conclusion that five cents per pound 
covers the average cost of cotton in an average season, includ- 
ing all expenses. On a small farm badly managed, and conse- 
quently having a small yield per acre, cotton may cost ten 



OHAI>. vir ] 



COST OF HAISIX(! COTTOX. 



307 



9? I, 




U,A 



308 COTTON. [cu.w: vi. 

cents per pound ; on a large farm with the ground well culti- 
vated, with a liberal use of fertilizer, and with the best niach- 
iner}^ available, cotton can be raised for less than five cents 
per pound. 

The .state of the weather, of course, is the chief influence 
affecting the price of cotton. On the weather from April to 
September depends whether the American crop shall be a 
million bales more or less than the normal crop. Something- 
is said in another chapter on the effects of weather; but tliis 
is not the only influence. The acreage is a matter of consid- 
erable importance. After a season of high prices of cotton and 
low prices of corn, an increase in the acreage of cotton may 
be almost always looked for the following season, and vice 
versa. Even in the season of lower prices of cotton and com- 
paratively high prices of corn, the farmer is yet willing to plant 
his land in cotton the following season, as cotton is the 
favorite crop in the South. Not only this, but one large crop 
tends to cause another the following season. After a large 
crop the farmer's credit is unusually good, and he has more 
money to spare, consequently he is in a better position to pur- 
cliase plenty of fertilizer for the following season, to use better 
implements, and more mules in cultivating. The reverse of 
this is also the reason why one i»oor crop, or a season of low 
prices, tends to cause a small crop the next season. 



CliAi'. VII.] P.YE PRODl'CTS OF COTTOX SEKD. 309 



CHAPTER VII. 

BYE PRODUCTS OF COTTOX SEED. — COTTOX SEED OIL MILLS. THE 

MAXl'FACTURE OF COTTOX SEED OIL. — COTTOX SEED MEAL. — OIL 

REFIXERIES. USES OF COTTOX SEED OIL. COSTS. COTTON 

SEED AND MEAL AS FERTILIZERS. AX EXGLISH COTTON SEED 

OIL MILL. DELI XTIXG COTTON SEED. — PRICES OF COTTOX SEED 

PKODU("rs. 

Bye Products of Cotton Seed. The, lint for spinning pur- 
])Oses is by no means the only product of the cotton plant. 
Many large industrial firms in the South are employed in the 
business of working up the cotton seed in different ways, and 
among their products arc : — 

Liiifcrs. This is the name given to the short fibres or 
fud that clings to the seed after the long fibres have been 
removed in ginning. Tliis short fibre is removed by special 
gins and either sold as linters for s[)inning purposes or made 
into batting (wadding). 

Halls.. These are the outer casings of the seed and are 
split off preparatory to expressing the oil. Hulls are largely 
used as cattle feed. 

( 'off on Seed Oil. This is the most valuable bye product 
and is expressed from the meats which form tlie center of the 
seeds. 

Oil Cake. After the oil has been expressed, the meats 
are left in the form of a cake, which is broken into small 
pieces which are ground into meal. This is used either as 
cattle feed, or as fertilizer. 

Fcrfilizer. The cake is broken and ground, then used 
eitlier alone, or mixed with other substances, as a valualile 
fertilizer. 



310 COTTON. [chap. VII. 

Cotton Seed Oil Mills. All of the above articles are i)ro- 
(lueed ill the larger oil mills, exce})t l)atting, which is only made 
in a tew mills. A ginning and oil refining business is gener- 
ally conducted in addition. In the smaller oil mills, usually 
only the businesses of ginning, crude oil pressing, feed and 
fertilizer making, are conducted. 

In the cotton growing states the average territory covered 
by the operation of each oil mill is 2500 square miles. This 
covers all kinds of country, whether under cotton or not, and 
the statement is made merely in order to indicate the distance 
from which seed has to be brought in order to be pressed, and 
to show^ the centralization of the oil mill business. Of course 
in states like Louisiana or Mississippi, where cotton is the 
staple crop, oil mills are situated more closely, while they are at 
greater distances apart in states like North and South Carolina. 

The cotton seed product of the South amounts to 5,000,- 
000 tons annually, valued raw at $35,000,000. In 1S67 there 
were only four mills in oi)oration ; in 1S07 there were over 300, 
with more than $50,000,00(1 invested. This industry employs 
10,000 people. In 1S72 less than 5O00 barrels of cotton seed 
oil were exported ; in 1S9G more than 300,000 barrels were 
shipped to foreign markets. 

There are now annually crushed in the oil mills of the 
South about 2,000,000 tons of cotton seed, giving a product of 
950,000 tons of hulls and 80,000,000 gallons of oil, besides 
meal and linters. - More than 3,000,000 tons of cotton seed 
are not as yet hauled to the oil mills on account of the dis- 
tance from the gins, or the desire of the farmer to use it for 
fertilizer in its natural form. The materials manufactured 
from the seed are valued at $33,000,000. 

The oil mills have buying agents at the stations on the 
railroads in their own districts and in the market towns. The 
seed is shipped directly into the oil mill yards in car loads. 
In addition to this, the oil mills handle the seed from their 
own ginneries and seed hauled in l)y I'oad from local ginneries. 



CHAP. VII.] 



COTTON SEED OIL MILLS. 



Ill 




m & a B ! &J- B B 



fj^dl 



TT^sIE 



uj Q Q a 



_H_31^'' 



— !;♦«=-{) — 
hHHHh 



—[}■<— — « — 3 e-ir= 



_o{]_j}— 



fi^i-Tx 






t— I i^-j 



a„ i 



-^f=- 



FA. O O « F>1. A N 




Fig. 151. R Cottori Seed Oil iWiH. Plaq ar\d Section. 



312 COTTON. [cilAP. VII. 

The seed on its arrival at the oil mill, if it cannot he handled 
and the oil expressed at once, is stored in a seed honse — a 
hnilding removed some distance from the oil mill, owing to 
the liahility of fire. 

In storing cotton seed it is im])ortant to keep it cool and 
dry, as the heat and other changes produced by fermentation 
are detrimental to the character of the oil and meal produced. 
Seed which has been trampled upon and crushed to any great 
extent l)efore storing is prone to heat IVom oxidation of the 
ex})Osed oil, and increases the danger of fermentation and 
undesirable changes in the seed. River cotton seed produces 
a little more oil than railroad seed, and there is often a corre- 
sponding difference in their values. Seed can be shipped 
by rail in bulk, but it has to be sacked when shipped by river. 
Mills must furnish river seed dealers with sacks, and besides 
the cost of the sacks, there is the expense of the labor in sack- 
ing and unsacking the product. 

A two press mill with a capacity of thirty to forty tons of 
seed })er twenty-four hours lias the following equipment of 
machinery and plant: 

One sand and boll separator or reel, with magnetic field. 

One meat and hull separator or reel. 

Two fifteen-plate presses and fixtures. 

One set seventy-two inch heaters ( 2 ). 

One set chilled rolls, ( four high ) thirt3'-six inch. 

One cake former ( steam carriage and track ). 

One duplex hydraulic pump. 

Also, 

One ninety horse-power boiler and fixtures. 
One seventy-five horse-power engine and fixtures. 
Four ]0()-saw linters. 
One huller. 
One cotton press. 
One cake cracker. 
One meal mill. 

Two oil tanks twelve feet by twelve feet. 

In addition to piping, shafting, pulleys and hangers, elevator fixtures, 
conveyors, belting, sprinklers and electric light plant. 



314 COTTON. [(IIAP. VII. 

Fig. 14!> is a view of the large mill of the (ieorgia, 
(\)tt(iii ()il ('()iiij)aiiy, Macon, (ieoigia, and at l''ig. !")<• is 
shown a group of buildings I'oi'niing part of anotluM- cotton 
seed oil mill. 

Tn the descriiition of a cotton seed oil mill it will bo 
unnecessary to enter into minute details, as mills vary some- 
what in the methods l>y which they accomplish the 'same 
results. A general description of a successful, well-conducted 
mill will give a very lair idea of the general management and 
the {)i-incij)les involved in them all. 

The Manufacture of Cotton Seed Oil. A plan and sec- 
tion of an oil mill is shown at Fig. lol, and the follow- 
ing descrii)tion is given of the treatment of the seed in lirst 
class mills : — 

The seed is removed from the cars hy being shoxclled 
into conveyors, which are spiral screws, as at a, l''ig. 1-")1, 
working in tronghs with perforated bottoms, so as h) provide 
for the removal of small stones, soil and sand. The seed is 
passed along the conveyor and the sand dr(»ps through the 
perforations. It }>asses into an automatic elevator, A, and is 
raised to the to[) of the building, two stories in height, and is 
deposited in a sand and boll reel or sej)arator, shown at l''ig. 
lol in the transverse section of the mill, and also at f'ig. 
152, comsisting of a large meshed screen, which alhiws 
the seeds to pass, but not sticks, bolls and other trash, and a 
small mesh screen, which ])i'events the seeds pa.ssing, but pai'ts 
with sand and small dirt. In its couive the seed passes one 
or more strong magnets, to which nails and other sci'aps of 
iron are attracted, and from which ihvy are rt'nioved periodi- 
cally. Some oil mills are three or four stories high, instead of 
two, as in the mill undcn- description. 

After the sifting and cleaning, the seed passes to the 
linter room. This room in the mill under description, Fig. 151, 
contains a nund)er of linters, which are cotton gins s|)ecially 
adapted for removing the short hbre from the seed. The seed 



ciiAi'. VII.] Till-; :MAxrKA('TrRK of cotton hekd oil. 



:U5 



i5 







31 () 



COT'l'ON. 



[i llAP. VII. 



is (U'liosited ill till' roll W(>\ or scimI hox. hi its ociicrnl coii- 
striirtidii (his liiitcr L^iii li;is iiiniiy pdiiits of rcsfinlihiiicc to 
tlu> orilinary saw <iin descriltcd in ('lia])ti'r l\', Imt tlic saws 
on the lintcr arc sot cIoscm- than in the cotton i;iii, the tcctli 
arc finer set, and in order to ket'p the mass ol" si'ed re\()l\ini2; 
in the seed hox, a roller is inserted. A view ol' a lintcr is 
shown at I'^Il!,'. 1 ")•">. 

The saws of the liliter, like those of the j^^'ilis in larm' 
mills, are sharpened hy niaehinery, a saw sharpener or mini- 
mer, l''i^. l")l, heinii,' used for this purpose, operated l»y jtower. 
'IMu^ last two illustratitins are used hy jjermission of tlie 
('arv(>r ( 'otton (iin ('o.. of Ivist Urid^t'water, Ahiss. 

The lintinu' is eompletiHl in two operations, the lint li'oiii 
(he lirst lintin^' heint;- of i-oui'se hotter than from the second, 
and containing some lon<;' til)ros not rcniox'cd in i;innini;. The 
seed is not cidii'cly dcliided, i( heinii,- (he |)racticc in American 
mills to leavi' a portion of the fud on the hull as it assists 
suhsc(|ueii( operations. The lint is deli\'ered hy condensers as 
a sheet and wound in a roll. 

This lint is usually |»resscd into hales and sold, hut some 
of tlu' mo.st advanced oil mill men manufactui'c it into hat- 
tiiiL;- on the mill promises. 

This is done hy a process of t'ardinii,- on ( iariiett niachines, 
the lihrcs hciiit;- laid crosswise in a layer or sheet, which is 
rolled into one pound halls on an automatic machine. r>at- 
tim;- is largely us(>d in the I'liited States as a liniiiii, for com - 
fullers ( lined (piilts ) and other purposes. When liuters are 
sold in the hale, it is for the |)urpose of hcini;- spun into coarsen 
carpe( and other yarns. 

'J'liis lint from the cotton seed is sold under the same 
name as that of the machiiu's which remove it, that is, 
" linters." It would seem as if li({|e lin( cot(ou could ho 
secured from a previously L:,iiiued seed, yc( a lar^e mill will 
ol)(ain ahou( eii;li( hales a day of oOO pounds each. 

The sccmI having left the second lintcr drops into a huller. 
This is a machine haviiit;' for its (,)l)ject the crackin>j,' of the 



CHAP, vii.] THE MAXUFAf'TUltK OF COTTON SEED OIL. 



:m 




Fig. 154. Saw Gurqrqer or Sl^arpeqer. 



;318 COTTON. [chap. VII. 

hull, which is the outer coating of the seed, and consists essen- 
tially of a cylinder carrying fourteen hlades attached by 
radiating bars to a central shaft, revolving inside a grating 
formed of thirty adjustable bars parallel to the beater blades 
and only one thirty-second of an inch from them. The 
passage of the seed l)etween the blades and bars effectively 
cracks the hulls and the meats are then free to drop out. The 
machine is shown at Fig. 156. 

The meats and hulls together are again elevated to the 
top floor and passed through a hull and meat separator, shown 
at P'ig. 158, when by shaking, the meats are effectively separ- 
ated and pass along one conveyor, while the hulls go to 
another. 

Tlie hulls formerly were wasted, burned for fuel, or given 
away, but their value as cattle feed, especially if mixed with 
cotton seed meal, is now appreciated, and they are saved and 
sold, either loose or in little bales. These bales are pressed 
between boards and tied with wire, weigh 100 pounds, and 
are about fourteen inches ^vide by eighteen inches long and 
twenty inches thick. 

The meats pass forward through heavy calender rolls to 
crush the oil cells, and thence into the cooking kettles or 
heaters. A set of these chilled ])ress rolls for seed or meats is 
shown at Fig. 150. The seed is droi)})ed into a box above 
the upper roll and passed alternately between each pair of 
rolls and effectively crushed. 

Cotton oil may either be pressed from the seed as it leaves 
tlie calender rolls without being cooked, in which case it is 
called cold draw^n oil, which is high grade, or as is commonly 
done, it may Ijo heated for half an hour or more to oxi)and 
the oil vessels in the meats and render the oil more fluid and 
more easily separable from the meats. The heater also drives 
off the moisture, if any, in the meats. Fig. 160 shows two 
heaters or "cookers," also a former and four presses. 

Each of the two heaters in the above plant are steam 
heated pans, jacketed all round the sides to the full height as 



,320 



COTTON. 



[chap. VII. 



well as at the Itottoiii. They are covered outside witli a iion- 
heat conducting material and the steam is usually kept at a 
pressure of 100 pounds. Each holds 700 pounds of meats. 

The cookers are first charged with seed, each charge being 
cooked usually hall' an hour, the time given being at the dis- 
cretion of the su})erintendent. In some cases where wet or 
frosted seeds are used, the time is extended to forty or forty- 




Fig. 156. Cottoq Seed Huller. 

five minutes; in no case even for dry seed is the time less 
than fifteen minutes. These cookers are watched over by a 
man called a cooker, and uynm his judgment this part of the 
work depends ; any failure upon his part to judge correctly 
means loss to the mill. The cooker charges each kettle by 
pulling a lever which delivers the proper charge into each, 
and an opening at the side of each kettle, closed with a slide, 
permits him at any time to withdraw a sample with a wooden 



1. 


t ^ 


■ 


I- ■ 


■^ z 










sa 



III! 1 



.--mi 
Em 



IlZI' 



033) raa 



sd 



c:?:!! (113,1 



322 COTTON. [chap. VII. 

paddle used I'ov the }iui"[)()se, and judge of its condition. 
Either too little cooking or too nuidi cooking gives a small 
yield of oil. The cooking must he just right for the best 
results. An under-cooked charge also appears to leave some 
water in the meats, which causes the (-loths to burst in the oil 
presses, to the damage of these expensive fabrics. The heat- 
ing renders the oil limpid, expands the oil cells, probably 
bursting them, and dries out the water, which is not only 
detrimental in the oil presses, but causes the meal to deteri- 
orate much faster than is the case when more perfectly diy. 
Another style of cooker is shown in Fig. H)2. 

Fig. 164 gives a view of a portion of the interior of an oil 
mill, which is not a very attractive scene as a rule. 

When properly cooked the meats are dumped into a 
conveyor, which carries them to the "former," shown on a 
small scale at Fig. 160, and on a larger scale at Fig. 1G5. 
At the former, experienced workmen work with clock-like 
regularity. Upon the jdatform of the former, which stands 
about waist high, a porter throws down a steel plate about 
one foot wide and about two and a half feet long. Two 
men stand at the former, and one throws a piece of camel's 
hair cloth, about six feet long and a foot wide, lengthways 
u[)on the steel plate. The second workman pulls a lever and 
a charge of meats three or four inches deep is deposited over 
the cloth upon a space almost as large as the steel plate. The 
other workmen immediately fold each end of the cloth over 
the charge, their surplus length causing them to lap. A lever 
is pulled and down comes the plunger, which is about the size 
of the platform. It immediately releases itself from the cake 
of meats and returns to its original position, leaving the meats 
pressed to a coherent mass or cake wrapi)ed in cloth ; this the 
porter seizes, with the underlying steel plate, which he uses as 
a kind of waiter to carry the cake, and places it in the 
hydraulic oil i)ress, which is made to hold a numljer of these 
masses. The two workmen labor to keej) u[) with the hot 



> •) o 



[AP. VII.] TiriC MANUFACTrHE OF COTTON SKKD olF.. oio 




:^)24 COTTON. [CHAI>. VII. 

meats as tliev coiiu' from the cookci's, and tlic porters trot l)aek 
and fortli with tlieir steel [dates and loails of eake. ra[)idly 
tilling the })resses. As each of the })rosses, one of which is 
shown at Fig. 1 Ofi, receives its twelve or fifteen cakes their 
attendant j)nlls a lever and the I'am at the base slowly rises 
upward with an initial pressure of 300 to 400 pounds, grad- 
ually rising to a |)ressure of 3,000 to 3,500 pounds to every 
square inch on its surface of 201 s(|nare inches. The lower 
portions of the press, carrying the cakes with them, continue 
to rise slowly as the ram ascends. As the mass becomes more 
and more compact, the oil begins to flow, at first in tiny streams, 
and later gushes forth in torrents, a large stream pouring from 
the spout which delivers the oil as it spurts from every por- 
tion of the press. The dark, murky oil passes through pipes 
made to receive it into a large reservoir beneath the })resses. 

This oil is pumped from the reservoir into large settling- 
tanks, where the various foreign substances are allowed to 
gradually settle and leave the oil in a somewhat clearer con- 
dition. After the full pressure has been reached in each press 
and the cakes of meats contract no longer, tlie chief portion of 
the oil has been pressed from the oil cells of the meats ; the 
oil, however, continues to run in small streams from the inner 
portions of the meats, hence each press is allowed to di'ain 
as long as is convenient, usually about tw^enty minutes. While 
the operation is going on in one press the other presses are 
being filled, and one after another they are operated and 
allowed to drain, until the wdiole series are under pressure ; 
then the first press is relieved of its pressure by a reverse 
movement of the lever, and the heavy ram slowly descends, 
carrying the lower parts of the press with it. 

Cotton Seed Meal. The attendants now withdraw the 
compacted cakes of meats, still hot from their recent cooking. 
The pressure has been so great that each seems as solid as a 
piece of wood. The cakes are then quickly laid on trucks and 
carried to the " strij)])ing table " : there tlie workmen stand, 



CHAP. VII.] 



COTTON' SKEI) MKAL. 



32o 




Fig. 159. Set of Ctiilled Rolls for Prcs^i.ig Meats. 



320 COTTON. [fllAl-. VII. 

called " !^ti'i})})er.s '' or "skinners." They rapidly stri]) the 
camel's hair cloth from the cakes, throwing them over to the 
workmen at the "former," each cake still appearing, after the 
cloth has been removed, as if yet covered with the material, 
on account of the enormous pressure making a perfect impres- 
sion of it in the mass of the cake. 

The camel's hair cloth used for covering these cakes is 
made of very expensive material, hence the sewing miichine 
is kept industriously at work to keep them in re})air and to 
make them last as long as possible. 

These boarddike cakes are now thrown on trucks and 
rolled quickly away to the cooling room, where the cakes are 
pushed into racks to keep them separate from each other and 
allow them to cool as ra})idly as possible, and to dry also, if 
there is any moisture remaining. After standing in the cool- 
ing room from twelve to twenty-four hours, the cakes are fed 
into a machine called the " cake-cracker." This cake cracker, 
shown at Fig. 167, is composed of two revolving rollers with 
spikedike projections ; these, revolving in opposite directions, 
draw the cakes into the cracker rapidly, crushing them into a 
number of small pieces the size of a hickory nut. This 
machine breaks up the cakes in this manner that they may be 
more easily and cheaply conveyed by means of mechanical 
conveyors than could possibly be done by hand, and also 
that they may be in suitable form to feed into the grinder. 

The work people in the oil mills, with the exception of 
the superintendent, master mechanic, overseers, engineer and 
so on, are almost exclusively colored. The atmosphere is 
usually so hot and oleaginous that a white man cannot 
endure it. Besides this the remuneration required by a col- 
ored operative is considerably less than that of a white man. 

From the cake cracker the broken cakes are conveyed to 
either burr mills or roller mills, as the case may be, and 
ground into meal. This meal is then either packed into sacks 
for sale in that condition, or if the mill has a fertilizer 



CHAP. Vll] 



COTTON SEKI) MEAL. 






i5' 



5 




328 COTTON. [cirAP. vir. 

factory oj)erated in connection witli it, tlie meal is conveyed 
direct to the "mixers/' where it is mixed with acid j)hosj)hate 
and potash, constituting a complete fertilizer. 

The ingenuity of the inventor has heen applied even to tlie 
mixing of this fertilizer, and the weighing of the sacks. Tlic 
view at Fig. 168 not only shows an admirable arrangement 
of a duplex rotary apparatus, A, which mixes the fertilizer, 
allowing it to fall into a j^it, B, from whence it is elevated to 
a sufficient height to iall into a bag already placed on a scale, 
1' ; the view also illustrates the construction of the eleva- 
tor, C, which forms so important a part of cotton seed oil mill 
construction as a means of automatic transit of seed, hulls, 
meats, meal, and so on. 

If the feed stuff has to l)e exported it is in the most con- 
venient form in the cake, but the greater proportion remains 
in the United States, either for use as feed or fertilizer. In 
either case, the cake has to Ije cracked as described above, 
and then ground to a fine meal in a cake mill. The French 
burr grinder, represented at Fig. 100, is a popular type of 
cake mill. 

It then forms the cotton seed meal of commerce. For 
feed purposes, it is usually made up in 100 pound bags, and 
sold along with the hulls, and the stock raiser blends the two 
to his liking. In other cases, the oil mills keep cattle and 
mix the hulls and meal for feeding purposes, j^referring to sell 
them in the form of beef. 

Cotton seed meal is used as a manure, either alone or with 
other ingredients, as it contains about three and one-third per 
cent, of phosphoric acid, two and one-fourth per cent, of 
potash, and over eiglit per cent, of nitrogen. It will l)e seen 
that it is valuable for the puq)ose. 

A better })la.n would be to feed the meal to the cattle and 
use the manure as fertilizer, as eighty or ninety per cent, of 
the fertilizing ingredients of the meal are voided l)y the 
animals. 






o 



^ 
^ 



m 



tn 




380 COTTON. [ciiAi-. VII. 

Ill various states, })articularly Texas, many tlioiisaud head 
of cattle are annually fed, and, with the addition of cotton seed 
meal, are fattened upon cotton seed hulls. Much of the 
C'hicago and Kansas (_'ity dressed heef shipped to all parts of 
America in refrigerator cars is simply concentrated cotton 
seed meal and hulls. The price of hulls varies from two to 
three dollars a ton, which is far helow their intrinsic value. 
Dairies near the larger southern cities, and many farmers near 
enough to the mills, are now feeding milch cows on them. 

Oil Refineries. The crude oil in case of the smaller oil 
mills, called "crude oil mills," is harrelled and shipped to a 
refinery. In case of the largest mills, there is a refinery 
attached. 

In the processes of refining, the impurities in suspension 
are usually allowed to settle, and the clear supernatant oil is 
drawn oft'. To the latter from ten to fifteen per cent, of caus- 
tic soda, according to the nature of the oil, is added, and the 
mixture agitated at a temperature of 100° to 110° F. for forty- 
five minutes, the precipitate being allowed to settle from six 
to thirty-six hours. The residues obtained are disposed of as 
for the manufacture of soap, stearin, and so on. The whole 
mass settling carries with it the albuminous and mucilaginous 
materials as well as most of the coloring matter. These sub- 
stances collect at the bottom of the tank, leaving a supernatant 
oil of a light straw color. 

The yellow oil resulting from this process is further })uri- 
fied by being heated and allowed to settle again, or by filtra- 
tion, and is called summer yellow oil. Tliose portions of the 
oil which are not as bright and clear as desired are run through 
filter presses, in which the oil is forced by lieavy pressure 
through filtering cloths. A filter press is shown at Fig. 170. 
Winter yellow oil is made from the above material by chilling- 
it until it partially crystallizes anjl separating the stearin 
formed (about twenty-five per cent.), in presses similar to 
those used for lard. The latter constitutes the true cotton seed 



ciiAi'. vi:.] 



on, KKFIXKHIKS. 



831 



(5' 




332 COTTON. [cilAI'. VII. 

stearin of coinnicrec, and is largely used in tlie prei)aration of 
butter and lard substitutes, and candles. 

Another substance inn»ro{)erly called cotton seed stearin 
is obtained by distilling with superheated steam the mixture 
of organic acids formed when the mineral acid is made to 
decompose the ''foots" obtained during the process of refining 
cotton seed oil by alkalies, and pressing out the " olein " from 
the distillate after cooling and solidification. 

For the i)reparation of the white oil of commerce the 
yellow oil obtained as above is shaken up with two to three 
per cent, of fullers' earth and filtered. 

Views of a Texas oil refinery are shown at Fig. 171. The 
three story building shows the })ortion devoted to storing the 
crude oil and treating it to get rid of the foots and soap stock. 
Tanks A, B, C, are used for this purpose, and D is the filter 
press. The oil from the filter press is deposited in the storage 
tanks for refined oil, E, F, and G. 

A sulphuric acid chamber is frequently operated along 
with an oil refinery. A view of such a building is shown at 
Fig. 172. 

Uses of Cotton Seed Oil. Broadly stated, refined cotton 
seed oil can be used for every purpose to which oil can be put, 
except household illumination and lubricating, for which 
latter, it is too mucilaginous. Yet for cooling hot journals 
and for electric insulation it has been found better than any 
other oil. Summer yellow is tlie ordinary staple of the cotton 
seed oil. The bulk of this goes to the manufacturers of a pro- 
duct used largely in cooking, and by bakers for "shortening." 
It is also bought in large quantities by laundry soap manufac- 
turers, when its price is lower than tallo\v. It is an important 
article of export, being employed in Europe in the manufac- 
ture of butterine — and this because of the sui^eriority of the 
American oil over that refined in England and France from 
Egyptian seed. \ The oil for butterine is made from selected 
seed, a still "further selection being made in the crude oil. 




■.f 



004 COTTOX. [CIIAI'. VII. 

"Summer yellow" is also used by bakers, and by cooks in 
frying, in wliieli latter culinary process it bas tbe advantage 
tbat it can be used over and over again, witli a little refresh- 
ing, for the same articles. The oil is also l)leached to a " sum- 
mer white" and a " winter white," the latter strained so as 
not to chill in winter. " Winter white " is the staple cotton 
seed salad oil, used for that purpose in the land of the olive 
itself. It is also used largely in cooking l»y orthodox 
Hebrews, who naturally prefer the " cottolene " made from 
" summer yellow " cotton seed oil to lard made from hog's fat, 
and druggists employ it for bases of liniments, salves and sim- 
ilar preparations instead of olive oil, than wdiich it is from 
two-thirds to three-fourths cheaper. Though cotton seed oil 
cannot be used in chimney lamps, it is a free burning, smoke- 
less, odorless oil in miners' lamps, it being so excellent for this 
l)urpose, that in Ohio the law provides that cotton seed oil, 
pure lard oil, or their equivalent, must be used in mines. As 
the miner has to sup])]y his own oil, it also commends itself to 
him for its cheapness. Cotton seed oil is also used for tloating 
tai)ers in night lamps, and for altar lam])s in Roman Catholic 
churches. It has been found valuable in preserving wood by 
saturation ; for temi)ering steel, especially in the manufactur- 
ing of springs ; and salt makers float it on the top of their tanks 
to prevent these from bubbling over. Paper manufticturers 
make a similar use of the crude cotton seed oil, as it is cheap 
and non-explosive. Machine makers use it in cutting threads 
on bolts, and it is mixed with puttv and paint. The foots, 
the residue in the refining kettle, is sold for soap stock. It 
may be stated that the various table uses of cotton seed oil 
have been known and practically enjoyed abroad for many 
years, while in America it has been appreciated i)rinci|)ally by 
pork packers. As the price of cotton seed oil became less, the 
pork packers discovered that by adulterating it with beef 
stearine it could be sold as lard. Since its introduction to 
this use large and increasing quantities have been consumed 



CHAP. Vll.] 



USES OF COTTON SEED OIL 



OOO 




3;]() 



COTTON. 



[clfAP. VII. 



by tlic pork j)ackers, and the price of liogs has considerable 
inihience on the price of cotton seed ]>ro(hicts. Cotton seed 
oil is largely used for })acking sardines on the coast of Maine, 
and lor innumerable other pur[)oses. 

Costs. An approximate estimate of the cost of various 
sized oil mills, with or without ginnery or refinery, is given 
in the followinu' table : — 



^ 


o 




to 


,_^ 


1 


o 


o 


~ 


o 


O' 


o 


b 


o 


"^ 


;::^ j Capacity I'm- 24 hours in 
"^ " tons. 


InO 


GO 


0^ 


CO 


,_. 1 


o 


o 


S 


o 


o> I 


lO 


^_, 










to 


Z/i 


o 


o 


Ol 


Buildings, including oil 


o 


o 


o 


'— 


o 


mill, boiler, seed, and 


o 

o 


o 
o 


s 


o 
o 


p 


meal houses. 


to 


lO 


IC 


to 




Land and railroad side- 


"Oi 


"o 


"— , 


'— 


~o 


track, and water 


o 
o 


o 
o 


o 
o 


o 
o 


o 
o 


supply. 


, 


^ 










o 


1-3 

o 


CO 
"to 


o 
o 


Ol 

o 


Press room machinery, 
F.o.B. factorv. 


o 


o 


^ 


o 


o ! 


00 


In3 


o 


C/D 


on All other machinery in 


ill 


"—, 


o 


bl 


o oil mill to malie 


o 


o 


o 


o 


p 1 erude oil. 


^ . 












to 


00 


4^ 


_4- 


to 




Oi 


Ol 


a> 


"bi 


o 


Freight and Erection. 


o 


o 


o 


o 


p 




^ 




o 


o 






p 


s 


oo 


CO 


^J 


Total lor oil mill, boilers, 




'(-^ 


"o 


'j_ 


~bi 


seed and meal 


o 


^ 


o 


o 


o 


house. 


o 


o 


o 


o 


o 




CO 


JO 

"bi 


Ol 


^ 




Refinery, including build- 


o 




"Ci 




i n"g and all 


o 
o 


o 


o 


s 




machinery. 


io 


00 


en 


4-- 






Ol 


O' 


p 


co 




Total for oil mill and 


o 
o 


g 


3 


o 




refinery. 


r^ 


o 


C3 


^ 






^ . 


^ . 


, ■ 


„ 






o 


Ol 

o 


Ol 

o 

o 


Ol 

p 




Ginnery, (1 stand gins and 
cotton warehouse. 





4 


o 
















4^ 

o 


o 


Ol 


Or 




Total for oil mill, gin- 


"o 


"^ 


o 


o 




nery, and refinery. 


o 


o 


o 
o 









CHAP. VII.] 



USES OF COTTON SEED OIL. 



337 




Fig. 165. Forrr\er for Cottor] Seed CaKe. 



338 



COTTON. 



[chap. VII. 



Estimates of the profits fivnn a well designed mill in 
good and bad je^'s are shown l)olow : — 

Product of one ton of seed, and the results in a good year : 



Oil, 40 gals, at 20c. per gal. . 
Meal, 075 pounds at $1.00 per cwt. 
Hulls, 950 pounds at $3.00 per ton 
Lint, 30 pounds at 4c. per pound . 

Total 

Cost of seed in mill 

Cost of working, bagging, etc. 

Cost of fuel 

Profit . . . . 



$ 8.00 
G.75 
1.42 
1.20 

|)17.37 



$10.00 

3.00 

.75 



$3.6i 



or say in round numbers |3.50, which on 5,000 tons seed 
=$17,500. 

For the same mill in a bad vear : — 



Oil, 40 gals, loe 

Meal, 675 pounds at UOc. per cwt. . 
Hulls, 950 pounds at $2.50 per ton 
Lint, 30 pounds at Sic. . 

Total 

Cost of seed in mill 

Cost of working, bagging, etc. 

Cost of fuel 

Profit 



$ 6.00 
6.08 
1.19 
1.05 

$14.32 



$10.00 

3.00 

.75 



$0.57 



In round numbers, say 50 cents per ton on 5000 tons =$2500. 

No provision is made for depreciation, and wear and tear 
of the plant ; at least five per cent, should be estimated for 
this. The plant being worth aljout $50,000, five per cent, on 
this would thus absorb the profit in a bad year, but leave 
thirty per cent, profit in a good one. 

These figures all apply rather in the Atlantic states than 
west of the Mississippi river. They fM'>ply also to the oil mill 
business alone. As a matter of fact the best modern plants 
in the East compri.se in one factory a ginnery, an oil mill and 
fertilizer works, each of which departments helps the others 
out. 




Fig. 166. Cotton Seed Oil Press. 



340 CO'l'TOX. [(MAC. VII. 

I am indebted to the St i llwell-lJierce cV: Sinitli-N'aile < '(). 
of Dayton, ()hio, Inr sexcral illusti'ation.s in this chapter, l''it;s. 
ir)2, l.")<), KiO, and 170; also to the Cardwell Machine Co. of 
liichniond, \"ir<2;inia, for l^'i^s. loS, [i\'2, lOti, 1(17, and Mi'.', 
also to Ml'. I). A. Tompkins of (diarlotto, X.C, for some of 
the plans of mill plants. 

Cotton Seed and Meal as Fertilizers. 'idle rapid exten- 
sion of oil mills has not l)een an unmixed hIessiiiL;,' to the SontJi. 

In the lint itself, there is very little matter which impov- 
erishes the soil by removal, but the seeds, especially the inner 
meats, contain much valuable plant food, and the removal of 
them from the land either means g-radually re(hiced fertility or 
the re])laceiiieiit of these materials by artificial manures to 
keep the soil uj) to the re((uiretl staiulard. 

The colored, or for that matter, the white, tenant farmer, 
havinn' an opjtortunity ^iveii to him by the establishment of 
an oil mill, now sells his see(l regardless ol' consequences. 
His tenure of the land is uncertain ; if he leaves the seed, it 
may be for the benefit of some one else ; the temjitation of 
|4.00 to |5.00 for the seed from one bale is more than he can 
resist in the usual state of his exche(|uer, thus the land sulfers. 
This is especially the case with a negro, who will scdl all he 
can and beg seed for sowing next season. lie has to buy 
commercial fertilizers hiter which are charged up to him by 
his merchant on credit at a far greater ])rice than he got for 
his seed. 

The most logical and sensible system would be, as has 
been suggested by many stuch'uts of this subject, for the 
farmer to loan his seed to the oil mill, for them to remove the 
hulls, and extract the oil, returning him the meal, with such 
adjustment of weights exchanged as would be mutually sat- 
isfactory. The greatest fertilizing constituents being in the 
meal, and the least in the lint, the hulls, and the oil, the 
farmer thus retains for his land that which is of the gi'catest 
benefit to it. This is already done in some instances, only 
100 pounds of meal being given for each ton of seed. 



■|[A1>. vir] COTTON SEED AND MEAL AS FEIJTIIJZEKS. 341 






n 




342 COTTON. [CIIAP. VII. 

Cotton seed meal coutaiiis the tliree important fertilizing 
elements, nitrogen, phosphoric acid and potash. It cannot ho 
washed out of the soil like soluhle fertilizers, yet its fine me- 
chanical condition enables it to quickly decompose into such 
substances that the plant can rapidh^ avail itself of its con- 
tents of plant food. 

One analysis of cotton seed meal showed : — 



Water 


7.50 per cent 


Crude fat . ... 


9.26 


Albuminoids or protein 


. 47.29 


Nitrogen, free extract . 


. 24.39 


Fibre 


4.53 


Ash or mineral matter 


7.03 



100.00 

This seven per cent, and upwards of ash or mineral mat- 
ter contains the phosphoric acid and potash. Out of the 7.03 
23er cent, of ash about two-thirds is made up of these two ingre- 
dients. Cotton seed meal contains about two and three-fourths 
per cent, of phosphoric acid and about one and three-fourths 
per cent, of potash. The protein or albuminoids contains 
nitrogen, which is such a valuable ingredient in fertilizers. 
Cotton seed meal usually runs from 6.(3 per cent, of nitrogen 
to 7.8 per cent, of nitrogen. The latter figure is unusually 
high, but during a good crop year, when the seed is secured 
in the best condition, the nitrogen contained in it is inclined 
to run high. More thorough separation of the hulls from the 
meal, and more complete extraction of the oil, naturally give 
a higher proportion of nitrogen in the meal. The mills have 
now realized this, which is shown by the determination of 
nitrogen made in many cotton seed meals analyzed during tlie 
past few months by the State chemist of Georgia, the law in 
that State requiring in cotton seed meals at least seven and 
one-half per cent, of ammonia calculated from the nitrogen 
present. This seven and one-half per cent, requirement of 
ammonia is equivalent to G.l-S per cent, of nitrogen. German 



CHAP. VII.] COTTON SEED AND MEAL AS FERTILIZERS. 






observers have estimated the effect of cotton seed meal as a 
fertilizer as being fifty per cent, the first year, thirty per cent, 
the second year, and twenty per cent, for the third year. Of 
conrse, in very dry seasons the advantage of cotton seed meal 
is not so marked as witli a fair amount of moisture; this, 
however, is true to some extent of all fertilizers, (\jtton seed 



SACKING ClCVATOH 




Fig, 168. Fertilizer Mixer aqd SacKer. 



meal, as stated before, for the best results from an economical 
standpoint, should be first used as a feed and the resulting 
manure then used as a fertilizer. In feeding cotton seed meal 
alone, it is far too rich for that purpose, its nutritive ratio 
being very high. The percentage of protein present in cot- 
ton seed meal is quite large, and it has been a.scertaincd that 
to secure the best results in cattle-feeding, the amount of 



.344 



COTTON. 



[cilAP. VII. 



digestive })rotein fed should always be accompanied by a cer- 
tain ])roportion of digestible non-nitrogenous material made 
up of crude libre, fat and extractive. The crude protein is 
the nitrogenous portion of the food and is the most costly. 
Its chief work is tlie production of flesh and muscle. Cotton 
seed meal fed alone is a})t to produce "scouring" and diges- 
tive disturbance, hence the necessity of feeding it with less 
rich food is well understood. 




Fig. 169 CaKe Gririder or Burr Mill. 



Rich as the cotton seed meal appears and poor as the 
hulls seem in comparison, yet within the last few years cotton 
seed hulls have come to the front as a valuable cattle food. 
While apparently so dry, tasteless and devoid of nourishment, 
chemical analysis shows that they yet contain substances of 
much value. 

The producers of cotton-seed oil formerly used their hulls 
as fuel, and do so now whenever the demand for the hulls is 



CIIAl*. VII 



] COTTON SKKI) AND MKAL AS FEKTILIZKRS. 04.") 



O 




346 COTTON. [chap. vil. 

not great enough to keep u[i with the 8iip})ly. Cotton seed 
hulls contain in every 100 pounds according to one analysis : — 

Moisture ..... 7.25 pounds. 

Ash 2.88 " 

Crude protein .... 3.75 " 

Crude fiber 42.83 

Fat 1.54 

Non-nitrogenous extractive matter, 41.75 " 

100.00 

An English Cotton Seed Oil Mill. It may not be inap- 
pro}ii"iate here to give a description of an English cotton seed 
oil mill. There is a large quantity of cotton seed shipped to 
England from Egypt, and also from Brazil, the United States, 
and other cotton growing countries. The Egyptian seed is 
black .and smooth without the short fibres found on American 
seed. The Indian and Brazilian seed have this short tibre. 
Occasionally delinted seed is shipped to England, the object 
of removing the lint before shi])nient being to prevent the 
seed heating and firing in transit. Tlie centres of the oil 
pressing indu.stry in England are Hull and Liverpool. In 
one of the Liverpool cotton seed oil mills which has a floor 
area of about 2."), 000 square feet, and a capacity of dealing 
with thirty tons of seed in each twenty-four hours, the 
machinery is operated by a twenty-eight feet by eight feet 
Lancashire steel boiler working at 150 pounds pressure driv- 
ing a 360 indicated horse power central valve engine. This 
engine at present only works eight presses, but is calculated to 
operate sixteen pres.ses and cleaning machinery so as to treat 
sixty tons of seed daily. 

The seed is fir.st of all cariied l)y a nine-incli worm con- 
veyor to the cleaning reel, fifteen feet long. . The seed passes 
from this reel to what is known as Crawford's patent cotton 
seed cleaning machine, or delinting machine, for removing 
the lint, which is a conically shaped circular brush covered 
with steel bristles six inches lono;. This brush revolves 650 



CHAP. VII.] AX ENGLISH COTTON SEED OIL MllA.. 



347 





348 COTTON. [diAr. vu. 

times per iniiiuk', is tliirty iiu-lies in (li;iiiietcr at llic iipjier ciul 
niul l'oiiy-t\\(i iiK'lu's at tlie l(»wei' end. It is eiilii'ely siii'- 
rdUiided liy a IkkkI so arranged as to l»e set a short distane(> 
IVoni tlu' end of the hristles. and the interioi- of the hood is 
surfaeed entirely \vitli emery. Uy the hiij,h speed of rexdhi- 
tion of the brush auainst the stationary eowr, the Hnt is 
rubbed from the seeds, the hitter drop down to a conveyor 
and are eh'vated to the In^-hest ]»art i>f the buildinij,-. They 
are Www allowed to fall by their own weight into what are 
known as Sntelid'e's centrifugal dressing machines, in which 
the lint is se])arattMl from the seeds by an air curreid. 'idie 
lint j)asses forward to a i^in following,- the centrifugals, wdiile 
the seed falls fhrouuii the cH'ntrifu<;als to a conveyor, and is 
auain elevated to what is known as a jotigler. The.se jogglers 
are merely ])erforated zinc or steel sieving tables wdiicli are 
given a reciprocating niotion so as to se|)arate cleaned from 
uncleaned see(k The cdean seed is conveyed from the joggler 
to an automatic weighing machine which registers once for 
every sixty pounds of see(l passing int(» the oil mill proper. 
'I'he uncleaned seed which has not ])assed through the sieve on 
the joggler is gradually shaken into another couNcyor which 
takes it l^ack to the reel from whence it started and it goes 
through the whole of the |)rocesses again. It was stated above 
that the lint from the cleaners, after being separated from the 
seed at the centrifugals, was passed through a gin. There is 
one gin to each two centrifugals and their object is merely to 
run the lint thi'ough at a rapid rate and throw out any of the 
few seeds which may have esca})ed the centrifugals. The lint 
is then bagged uj) ; as it has l)een removed by such a st'vere 
process, this lint is not as valuable as that obtained by a linter 
gin. 

It will be seen that in this arrangement almost (>very- 
thing is automatic, that the conveyors and elevators re(|uire 
very little attention and yet })erlbrm their work in an ailmii-a- 
ble manner. 



cirAi'. VII.] 



DKLIXTING COTTON SKKI). 



349 



There are not iiiauy l-]iiij,lisli mills (-(luippcd with this sys- 
tem of separating lint from the seed. Probably more of the mills 
have the ordinary saw linter, such as is in use in the United 
States, while a luimber of others do not consider the lint to be 
woi'th the trouble of removing from the seed, and merely pass 
the seed through a dilute acid bath afterward heating the 
seed. This takes off all the short fdores adhering to the 
seed, and it is then dealt with exactly as is Sea Island or 
Egyptian smooth seed. 




Fig. 172. SulphiUric Acid WorKs. 



The equipment in the oil mill proper is very similar to 
that in an American mill, and the description which has been 
given will appl}^ almost exactly, excepting with reference to 
machinery for hulling the seed ; this goes directly to two 
sets of press rolls, five high, forty-six inches wide, and sixteen 
inches in diameter. These are chilled rolls ; the toj) one is 
fluted and the other four are smooth. After the seed has been 
crushed it is conveyed to an edge runner grinding mill, eight 
feet in diameter, twenty inches thick, made of grit stone 
rotating on a stationar}- iron pan. and, being of a tremendous 



350 COTTON. [CHAI'. VII. 

weight, effectively pulverizes tlie seed and liulls; thence these 
are carried by means of elevators to a cooker. There is only 
one of these cookers together with an automatic cake former. 
In connection with the cooker or kettle are operated eight 
hydraulic presses, each with sixteen plates three feet by 
seventeen and onedialf inches, with sixteen-inch rams. After 
the cakes have been pressed they are removed to an auto- 
matic cake paring machine, three feet wide, with two traveling 
knives. The parings from the cakes drop into a conveyor 
and are automatically carried under the heavy pressure of an 
edge runner smaller than the })receding one, and after being 
pulverized are carried back to the cooker. As has been before 
stated this machinery is erected to deal with thirty tons per day 
while the cleaning mill machinery handles double that amount. 

After the crude oil has been expressed from the seed it is 
pumped to a mixing tank where it is warmed and lowered to 
a bleaching tank. After this it is pumped to the storage tanks. 

It is sometimes stated that English mills get more gal- 
lons of oil and pounds of meal than American, but it must be 
borne in mind that owing to the existence of diflerent circum- 
stances a fair comparison cannot be made. It takes nearly 
3,000 pounds of seed, as it comes from the gin, to make a ton 
of seed in England, as there is first the loss of lint ( about 
thirty pounds ) and the English ton is 2240 pounds. Then 
English cake includes all the hulls, which is about fifty per 
cent, of the weight, and from a given amount of seed the yield 
of oil is less and the quality not so good from the deliuted 
seed as from the decorticated seed. The first cotton seed oil 
mills in America used the English presses, but at the present 
time are using presses that are greatly im])roved, while Eng- 
lish mills still follow the old S3^stem, and it would seem that 
it was more economical to manufacture the oil in America 
and shi}) only the oil and meal and save freight on the almost 
worthless hulls. 

The oil mill business in England is not on the increase, 
as the risk of fire in cotton seed in transit to that country is 



CHAT. VII.] 



I)i:i,lN'riX(. CoTToX SEED. 



351 




or)2 C'OTTOX. [CIIAP. VJI. 

great, while another and perlia|)S a greater disadvantage is in 
the freight, which has to be paid on tlie raw seed instead of 
on the manufactnred oil which occupies very nuicli less bulk. 
The tendency is for oil mills to become established in the 
conntry where cotton is grown, just as is the tendency of cot- 
ton mills for the manufacture of coarse goods. 

Delinting Cotton Seed* For several years past efforts 
have been made to export cotton seed from the United States, 
and to do this all the lint must he removed to prevent heating 
while in transit across the ocean. On its face the business 
looks very profitable, but there are many difficulties to over- 
come, and not the least of these is cleaning or delinting the 
seed. The oil mills remove a part of the lint, but to prepare 
seed for export it must be entirely denuded of lint, and present 
the appearance of the Sea Island cotton seed, or, as it is some- 
times called, "black" seed, to distinguisli it from the green 
seed of the short staple cotton. The saws of the gin alone will 
not do this, and the most successful machines so far have re- 
moved the lint by passing the seed through a series of emery 
or corundum discs. Many machines have been introduced for 
this pur[)Ose, but few are successful. 

The oil mills in America do not want the seed entirely 
delinted, as the hulls and meats cannot be as easily separated 
as when there is a little lint left on the hull. 

Prices of Cotton Seed Products. The prices on cotton- 
seed products in January, 1898, were : — 

New York, cotton-seed oil crude, nineteen cents ; crude, 
loose, f. o. b. mills, fifteen and one-half to sixteen cents ; sum- 
mer yellow, prime, twenty -two and one-half to twenty-three 
cents ; summer, off grade, twenty -two cents ; yellow, butter 
grades, twenty-five to twenty-six cents ; white, twenty-five 
cents ; winter yellow, twenty-eight to twenty-eight and one- 
half cents ; salad oil, twenty-nine to thirty cents. All above 
prices per gallon. Cotton-seed meal, |19.o0 per ton. Soap 
stock, one-half cent to five-eights cents per pound. Liverpool 



354 



(■OTT( )X. 



[CIIAI". \II. 



refined cotton-seed oil, 14s. (id. per 1 1'J [»()unds. American cake 
£5.10s.0d. to i:G.()s.Od. per ton. Egyptian cotton-seed, £4.13s.9d. 
ton. New Orleans cotton-seed, $7 per ton of 2,000 pounds net 
to the mills, no commission of any kind to Ije added ; cotton- 
seed meal jobbing per carload at de})ot, §16.50 to §16.75 
per short ton of 2,000 pounds ; for export per long ton of 
2,240 pounds f. o. b., $18.25 to $18.50; oil-cake for export, 
$18.25 to $18.50 per long ton f. o. 1). ; crude cotton-seed oil at 
wholesale or for shipment, strictly prime in barrels, per gal- 
lon, seventeen to seventeen and one-half cents ; loose, per 
gallon, twelve to fourteen cents, according to location of mill ; 
refined cotton-seed oil, prime in barrels per gallon at whole- 
sale or for shipment, twenty-one to twent3'-one and one-half 
cents ; cotton-seed hulls delivered per 100 pounds, according 
to location of mill, ten to twelve cents ; linters, according to 
style and staple two and three-eighths to three and one-half 
cents. 

Prices of raw cotton of all varieties are given on the 
Liverpool price list inserted at page 288. 







INDEX. 

Where several page numbers are given for one subject the more impor 
tant references are indicated by heavier type. 

For references to different varieties of cottons see tables on pages 7!» 
to 84. 

For index of illustrations see pages lo to 16. 



\^ 



A 

Abbasi Cotton .... 

African Cottons .... 

Allan-Seed Cotton .... 

American Cotton .... 

American Cotton Belt . 

American Cotton Cultivation in 1832 

American Locust .... 

American Oil Mills 

American Seaports Shipping Cotton 

American Species of Cotton . 

Analysis of Cotton 

Analysis of Cotton Seed Hulls 

Analysis of Cotton Seed Meal 

Analysis of Cotton Wax 

Area of Available Cotton Land in the United States 

Argentine Cotton .... 

Ash from Cotton Fibres 

Asia Minor Cotton ... 

Australian Cotton .... 



B 



Bahia Cotton . 

Baling Cotton ... 

Baling Press ... 

Bamia Cotton . 

Battery of Cotton Gins . 

Benders Cotton 

Bengal Cotton 

Biblical References to Cotton 

Bills of Lading 

Bloom in Cotton 

Bolls .... 



66 

64 

57 

56 

106 

102 

184 

310 

275 

22 

39 

:546 

342 

42 

126 

62 

39 

76 

75 

61 
.'02, 254 

23(i 
66 

224 
57 
69 
95 

275 
89 
28 



356 



INI) !■; \ , 



Boll Worm of Cott.m I'lant 
Botany of Cotton ... 
Boweds Cotton .. . 

Brazilian Cotton . 
Bremen Cotton Mari<et . 
Breaking Up Land for Cotton 
British and French Guiana Cottons 
Broach Cotton .... 

Bve Product of Cotton Seed . 



(>(». 



C 



^ Cake Cracker and Crinder 
Caterpillar of Cotton Plant 
Cattle Feeding .... 

Ceara Cotton 

Cellulose 

Ciiemical Composition of Cotton . 

Central American Cotton 

Charges for Ginning 

China Cotton ..... 

Chopping Out .... 

Churka Cotton Gin 

C. I. F. Cotton Contract . 

Classlflcatlon of Cotton 

Cleaning Cotton Seed 

Clearing Land for Cotton 

Climate of the American Cotton Belt 

Coconada Cotton .... 

Cold Drawn Cotton Seed Oil . 

Colored Cotton ... 

Colored People of the American Cotton Bt 

Composition of the Cotton Fibre . 

Compressing Cotton Bales 

Consumption of Cotton in the United State 

Consumption of American Cotton in Europe 

Continental Cotton Markets . 

Cooker 

Cost of Cotton Seed Oil Mills 

Cost of Raising Cotton . 

Cost of Raising Sea Island Cotton 

Cotton as an Article of Commerce 

Cottons According to Quality 

Cotton Bagging .... 

Cotton Baling .... 

Cotton Bale Dimensions 

Cotton Batting .... 



172 

17 

5S 

88, 2H2 

2<»6 

1 ;*,2 

no 

72 

309 



:]2() 

17() 

328 

61 

3!) 

30 

59 

21(i 

74 

1 52 

2:;4 

202 

85 
314 
126 
108 

77 
318' 

77 
12, 162 

30 
246 
285 
302 
206 
318 

;!.';6 

304 
109 
274 
54 
254 
258 
258 
316 



IXDK.N 










;;:>7 


Cotton Belt of tlie Tiiited States 54, lOG 


Cotton Boll Weevil 


ISH 


Cotton Boll Worm 


172 


Cotton Caterpillar 






176 


Cotton Characteristic? ...... 








78 


Cotton Compress ... ... 








. 248 


Cotton Cost per Pound 








. 304 


Cotton Crop by States 








128, 298 


Cotton Crops of the World 








50 


Cotton Cultivation, History of ... . 








!i2 


Cotton Culture 








1 29 


Cotton l-ables ...... 








96 


Cotton Fibre 








30 


Cotton Fields of the World ... 








49 


Cotton Ginneries 








214, 228 


Cotton Gins 








222 


Cotton Imports into United States 








. 300 


Cotton Markets of Europe 








288 


Cotton Markets of the United States . 








. 274 


Cotton Merchants ....... 








. 240 


Cottons of the World 








49 


Cotton Pickintj; 








. 160 


Cotton Pickin<i; Machines 








10() 


Cotton Planting 








142, 148 


Cotton Rust ... .... 








. 170 


Cotton Seed and Meal as Fertilizers 








. 340 


Cotton Seed Meal 








324, 340 


Cotton Seed Oil Mill (English ) 




346 


Cotton Seed Oil Mill Costs 












. 336 


Cotton Seed Oil Mills 












310 


Cotton Seed Oil Manufacture . 












314 


Cotton Seed Oil Pre«s 












324 


Cotton Seed Oil Refining . 












. 330 


Cotton Seed Oil U.ses 












. 332 


Cotton Seed Oil 












309 


Cotton Seed Oil Cake 












. 32(i 


Cotton Seed Products 












310 


Cotton Stalk Borer . 












184 


Cotton Ties .... 












. 256 


Cotton Wax .... 












42 


Cotton Worm .... 












. ] 70 


Counts of Yarns for which Cottons are ."■ 


-uitable 








78 


Crop of American Cotton by States 










12S, 298 


Crop of Cotton per Acre . 










118 


Cultivating the Cotton Plant . 










];;4, loC 


Cultivation of Sea Island Cotton 












. 188 



358 



INDKX. 



Cut Worms 
Cylindrical Bales 
Cyprus Cotton 



D 



Dacca Cotton 

Damage to Crops 

Damp in Cotton 

Dates of American Cotton Farming ( >perati( 
Delinting Cotton Seed .... 

Dharwar Cotton 

Dhollerali Cotton 

Diameters of Cotton Fibres 
Difference between Cotton and otlier Fibres 
Dimensions of the Cotton Fibre 
Diseases of the Cotton Plant . 
^Dissolution of the Cotton Fibre 
Distance Between Cotton Plants 
Distribution of American Cotton 
Duty on Cotton in Europe 
Dye on Cotton, Effects of ... 

E 

Egyptian Cotton 

Egyptian Cotton in America . 
English Cotton Seed Oil Mills 
English Mill Purchases of Cotton . 
Equipment of a Cotton Seed Oil Mill 

European Cotton 

Euroi^ean Cotton Mai'kets 
Exports of American Cotton 

Fertilizers and Fertilizing 

Fibre Measurements 

Fibres Other Than Cotton 

Fire in Cotton Bales 

Flax Fibres 

Florida Sea Island Cotton 

Flowers of Cotton Plant .... 

Foreign Cotton Seed 

Former for Cotton Seed Cake . 

Forward Delivery Contracts for Cotton, Livei 

Freight on Cotton — Land and Eiver 

Freight on Cotton — Ocean 

French Guiana Cotton .... 

" Future" Cotton Sales in America 

" Future " Cotton Sales in Liverpool 



po<^l 



. 184 

266 

76 

60 
. 170 
41, 89 

. 167 

. :5o2 

71 

72 

78 
42 

;-)7 

. 170 

45 

134, 152 

284, 302 

. 297 

48 

64, 87, 260 

. 800 
. 34(> 
. 290 
. 312 
76 
. 288 
. 302 

137, 309, 340 
3/ 
42 

. 264 

42 

56 

28 

. 146 

. 322 

292 

. 286 

. 297 

60 

. 276 

. 294 



IXDKX. 



359 



Genoa Cotton Market 
Genus of the Cotton Plant 
Georgia Crackers 
Gin Damage 
Ginning 

Good Farming . 
Gossj'pium Arboreum 
Gossypium Barbadense 
Gossypium Herbacemn 
Gossypium Hirsutum 
Gossypium Peruvianum . 
Gossypium i^andwichense 
Gossypium Tahitense 
Grades and Grading of Cotton 
Greek Cotton . . . . 
Gulf Cotton . . . . 



G 



V^ 



H 



Handling Cotton 

Havre Cotton Market ... 
Heater .... . 

High Colored Cotton ... 

Hindoo Cotton Gin 

Hinghunghat Cotton 

History of Cotton Cultivation . 

History of Cotton Cultivation in the United 

History of Cotton Ginning 

Huller for Cotton Seed .... 

Hulls 

I 

Immature Cotton 

Imports of Cotton into the United States 
Improvements in Baling .... 

Indian Cotton 

Influence of Weather on Prices of Cotton 
Inspection and Classification of Cotton in xS( 
Italian Cotton 



Java and Japanese Cotton 
Judging Cotton 

Kidney Cotton . 

Land Tenure in the Cotton Belt 

Length of Staple 

Levantine Cotton 

Life History of the Cotton Plant 



J 



PC 



States 



w Y 



ork 



. 28gL, 
17 
110 
. 22(>^ 
202,214' 
129. 167 
17, 18,21 
17, 18/ 
17, 18, 23 
-, 18, 21, 22 

i 

.7 
85 
^6 
57 

240 
296 

;'.is 

77 

2:U 

72 

92 

98 

202 

.'518 

309, 318, :546 



32 
300 
2()() 
88, 260 
308 
279 

76 



(>8, 



85 
22 

114 

78 
76 
2{) 



:;(')() 



INDEX. 



J 



\l 



Linters and Linter Gins 

Lint to Seed, Proportion 

Liverpool Cotton Association and Cotton ilarket 
Local Sale of Cotton . • . . . 

Lonjr Stapled Cottons, Table of . . . 

m: 

Maceio Cotton 

Machinery for a Cotton Seed Oil Mill 

Mako or Maco Cotton 

Maltese Cotton . 

Manures ... ... 

^Nlaranham Cotton 

INIarks on Cotton Bales 

iSIarkets of the United States ... 

INIeal from Cotton Seed 

Memphis Cotton 

Methods of Baling Cotton .... 
Mexican Cotton .... 

Mexican Weevil 

IMicroscopic Appearance of Cotton Fil)re 
INI i Ian Cotton Market .... 
Mill Purchases of Cotton, America 
M\]\ Purchases of Cotton, England 
Mitafifi Cotton . 
Modern Ginnery 
Modern Ginning 
Moisture in Cotton 
Mules on Farms 

N 
Nankin Cotton . 
Negroes in the South 
New Orleans Cotton . 
New Orleans Cotton Contract 
New York Cotton Contract 
Numbers of Yarns for which Cottons are Suitable 

O 
Ocean Freight ........ 

Ocean Shipment ....... 

Oil Refineries 

Old-Time Ginning and Baling .... 

Oomrawuttee Cotton 

Operations of Cotton Culture 

Paraiba Cotton 

Peelers Cotton 



:{09, 316, 348 
236 

289 

240 

79 



61 
312 

G4 

76 
340 

61 
272 
274 



137, 30!) 



324 

57 
254 

59 
186 

30 
296 
282 
289 

66 

230 

214 

41,89 

112 



12, 162 

57 

278 

278 

78 



297 

252 J 
330 
203 
71 
167 

61 
57 



iNi>i:x. 



361 



People of the American Cotton I'.elt 

Percentage of Lint . 

Persian Cotton . 

Peruvian Cotton 

Peruvian Cotton in America 

Picking Cotton . 

Planting Cotton 

Plant Lice .... 

Plows 

Poor Farming . 

Poor White Labor . 

Population of the American Cotton Belt 

Preparation of Cotton for the Market . 

Preparing Land for Cotton 

Product from One Ton of Cotton Seed 

Production of American Cotton by States 

Proportion of Lint . . . . • 

Pulling Staple 

Purchasing Cotton in Liverpool 
^^^-^ 'l^rices of Cotton Seed Pioducts 



R 



Red Cotton 

Rental of Cotton Farms 

Roller Gins 

Rough Peruvian Cotton 

Round Bales 

Rust on Cotton Plants 



236 
76 
62 
300 
160 
148 
184 
130 
167 

no 

109 
202 
130 
338 
, 298 
236 
88 
289 
352 

77 
114 
232 

63 
266 
170 



Sampling Cotton 

Sand in Cotton ...... 

Santos Cotton 

Saw Gin, Construction of . . . 

Schweitzer's Solution, Action on the Fibre 
Screw Press for Baling Cotton 

Sea Island Cotton 

Seeds 

Seeds in Cotton Pod .... 

Selection of Cotton 

Selection of Cotton Seed .... 
Selling Cotton in New York 
Selling Cotton in the Cotton Belt 
Selling Cotton in Europe .... 
Share System of Cotton Cultivation 

Sharpshooters 

Smvrna Cotton 



oo, 



246 
-K), 89 

61 
222 

45 
204 
188 
142 

:;o 

85 
142 
278 
240 
288 
116 
184 



362 



INDEX, 



Soiitli American Cotton 

Southern Cotton Mills 

Spanish Cotton . 

Species of Cotton 

Species of Cotton Grown in the United 

Spot CeJton Sales in Liverpool 

Spot Cotton Sales in New York 

Staple of Cotton 

Strength of the Fibre 

Structure of the Cotton Fibre . 

Surat Cotton 



States 



T 



Tables of Cotton Characteristics : 

Long Stapled 

Medium Length of Staple 

Medium to Long Stapled 

Short Stapled . 
Tares of Cotton Bales 
Texas Cotton . 
Thinning Out Cotton Plants 
Tinged Cotton 
Tinnivelly Cotton . 
Trade Names for Cottons 
Tree Cotton . 
Trieste Cotton Market . 
Turkestan Cotton . 
Turkish Cotton 

Unripe Cotton 

Uplands Cotton 

Uses of Cotton Seed Oil 

Varieties of Cotton 

Varieties of the Cotton Plant 

Vegetable Lamb 

Weather, Influence on Prices 
Weights of Cotton Bales 
West Indian Cotton 
Wool Fibre .... 
World's Cotton Crop 

Yarns from Different Cottons 
Young Cotton Plant 



U 



V 



w 



A' 



59 

116, 2:59 

76 

17 

19, 22 

290 

27 (i 

88 

48 

:]0 

73 



79 
84 
80 
82 

254 
59 

152 
89 
72 
78 
21 

296 
74 
76 

32 

58 
332 

54, 78 
17 
96 

308 

256 

60 

42 

49 

78 
26 



;]()3 



CroDipton k Knowles Loom Works 



WORCESTER, MASS. 

COTTONS, 
GINGHAMS, 

OOMS 



l^' 



POR WOOLENS AND 



WORSTEDS, 
CARPETS, 
SILKS, 



AND 



Every Variety of Woven Fabric. 



BRANCH WORKS: 

PROVII3BXCE, R.I. 

When writing to advertisers please mention this book. 



364 



WEAVING CALCULATIONS 

FOURTH THOUSAND— Cloth, Crown, 8vo. 

BY C. P. BROOKS. 

Honours Medallist in Cotton Manufacture, late Examiner to the City and Guilds 
of London Institute for the advancement of Technical Education. 



OONTerSLTS: 

Cloth Calculations. Winding, Spooling, Warping and Slashing 

Yarn Calculations. Calculations. 

Loom Calculations. Engine, Boiler, Shafting, and Speed Cakula- 

Harness and Reed Calculations. tions. 

Wage Calculations. Specifications of Machinery. 

General Textile Information. 



A complete work on the calculations required in the 
Cotton Weaving Trade 



Among the rules given aie many iiever before piiblislied, and as 
no effort has been spared to mad,e the book a complete collectioji 
of all Calculations wlicther intimately or remotely connected with 
the subject^ it- can be cordially recommended to those connected in 
any capacity with Cotton Manufacturing . 



To be obtained in England, Price Five Shillings, from 

E. and F. N. SPON, 125 Strand, 
LONDON, EX. 



and in the United States of America, Price $2.00, from 

SPON & CHAMBERLAIN, 
12 Cortlandt St., = NEW YORK CITY, 

OR 

C. p. BROOKS, LOWELL, MASS. 

When writing to advertisers please mention this liook. 



:'.(t5 



Cotton Manufacturing. 

SIXTH THOUSAND. Cloth, Crown, 8vo. 
By C. P. BROOKS. 



COr^TEIBlTSS 



The Weaving of Plain and Fancy Cloths. A Description of Looms, Tapjiets, 
Dobbies, Jacquards, Drop Boxes, and other Weaving Machinery. 
Preparatory Process, Winding, Beaming, Ball, Sect- 
ional, and other Systems of Warping. 

Sizing, Sizing Materials, Size Mixing, and Machinery. 

The varieties of Cloths, with particulars of the various Standard Makes of Plains 

and the production of Twills, Cords, Velveteens, Gauze, Leno, Pile 

Cloths, Double Cloths, Checks, Figured Dhooties, Jac- 

quard Goods, etc. 



A work eminently adapted to the requirements of all engaged in the Trade, 
and invaluable to Technical Students in any Department of Textiles. It is 
extensively used as the Class Book for the subject of Cotton Weaving. 



Price in England, Six Shillings, and in America, $2.25. 

To be obtained from the addresses named on previous page. 

Josiah Gates & Sons, 

M.-VNUFACTURERS OF 

Oak Tanned Leather Belting 



Lace Leather. Picker Leather. Loom 
Strappings and Mill Supplies. 

LOWELL, MASS. 

When writing to arlvertisers please meuliou this liook. 



306 



Wm. J. Matheson & Go.,Ltd. 

IMPORTERS OF 

Diamine Colors 

FOK 

Cotton. 

New York, 
Boston, 
Philadelphia, 
Providence, 
Charlotte, N.C. 
Montreal, Canada. 






When writing to advertisers please mention this booli. 



367 



Telegraphic Address : 

" ASA, " OLDHAM. 



Telephone : 

No. 7, OLDHAM. 



M LEES S CO. 



LIMITED. 



Soho Iron Works, 



OL-rmA-iwi. 



MAKERS OF 



All Kinds of Machinery 



Preparing, Spinning and Doubling 



COTTON AND WOOL. 



When writing to advertisers please mention this book. 



368 

Telegraphic Address — Postal Address— 

"UNION" BROOKS & DOXEY, 

MANCHESTER. MANCHESTER. 

BROOKS & DOXEY, 

UNION <S: JUNCTION IRON WORKS. 
MANCHESTER, ENGLAND. 



Cotton, Wool and Cotton 
Waste Machinists, 



PATENT HOPPER FEEDS. 

PATENT OPENERS AND SCUTCHERS, with self-lubricating pedestals and improved arrange- 
ment lor setting the bars. 

REVOLVING FLAT CARDING ENGINE, Flexible bend and improved setting arrangement. 

DRAWING FRAMES. 

SLUBBING, INTERHEDIATE AND ROVING FRAHES. Important Patented Improvements 
have recently been added to these frames, consisting of positively driven Differential 
Motion with spur gearing ; improved construction of Cones, and Compensating Swing. 
The application of these improvements is very essential, as by their use a much more 
even roving is guaranteed. 

RING SPINNING FRAHES lor Warp and Weft, or Filling. 

AHERICAN STANDARD RING TRAVELLERS for spinning and twisting, in steel or composi- 
tion. Steel Fhers. 

RING AND FLYER DOUBLING FRAHES, for sewing cottony mendings, knittings, heald 
yarns, netting, etc. 

FOR COTTOX W ASTE AXD WOOL. 

HARD WASTE BREAKERS. 

BREAKER AND FINISHER CARDING ENGINES, with cross or other feeds, and improved 
Condensers. 

SELF-ACTING HULES. 

W. L. HAINES & CO., 161 Pearl St., Boston, Mass. 

FOR UNITED STATES AND CANADA. 

When writing to advertisers please mention this book. 



369 



THE WHITIN MACHINE WORKS, 

WHITINSVILLE, MASS. 
S. W. CRAMER, Southern Agent. 

Builders oi Cotton Macliinerj. 

Cards, Railway Heads, Drawing Frames, 

Spinning Frames, Wet and Dry 

Twisters, Spoolers, Reels, 

Long Chain Quilling 

Machines, Looms. 



Stoddard, Haserick, Richards & Co., 

BOSTON, MASS., &. BRADFORD, ENG. 



BANKERS 

AND 

IMPORTERS 

ALL STYLES OF 

Textile Machinery, 

Mill Supplies, 

Egyptian 

Cotton. 

CARVER &. CO., CARVER BROS. &. CO., 

Alexandria. Liverpool. 

Correspondence Solicited. 



TEXTILE MACHINERY. 

SOLE REPRESENTATIVES FOR 

PRINCE SniTH & SON, Worsted Machinery, 
Preparers, Gillboxes, Drawing, Spinning, 
and Twislinjj. 

TAYLOR, WORDSWORTH & CO., Wool- 
washers, Cards. Backwashers, Gillboxes, 
and Noble Combs. 

DOBSON & BARLOW, Ltd., Cotton Machin- 
erv, "Simplex " Cards, Heilman Combers, 
Self-.Acling Mules, Fly Frames, Cone 
Winders, Gassing Frames. 

SAHUEL LAW & SONS, Ltd., Cotton. Wool- 
en and Worsted Card Clothing. 

SOCIETE ALSACIENNE DE CONSTRUC= 
TIONS HECHANIQUES, Worsted machin- 
ery on French system. 

Wn. WHITELEY & SONS, Woolen .Mules, 
Tentcriiig and Drying Machinery. 

J. & T. BOYD, Twisters, Spoolers and Re- 
tloublers. 

And Many Others. 



When writing to advertisers ple-i.-^e mention this Iniok. 



370 



WILLIAM FIRTH, 



IMPORTER OF 



Textile Jlaehinepy, 

EQUITABLE BUILDING, 

ISO Devonshire St., 

BOSTON, MASS. 



SOLE IMPORTER OF 



Hetlierington's Patent Revolving Top-Flat Carding Engines, 

Combing Machines, Drawing Frames, Roving Frames 
and Self=Acting Mules. 



Cuitis Sons & Co., Patent Worsted Card, Woolen Cards and 
Mules. 

Also, Worsted Machinery, on French and English systems. 

Wm. Tatham & Co., Vulcan Works, Rochdale, England, makers 
of Waste Machinery for Working Hard and Soft Waste, Cop Bot- 
toms, etc. 

James Yates & Son, Hardened and Tempered Steel Card Cloth- 
ing for Woolen and Worsted Cards. 

Joseph Stubbs, Manchester, England, Maker of Patent Quick 
Traverse Gassing Frames for Cotton, Worsted and Silk Yarns ; Yarn 
Preparing Machines ; also, Patent Adjustable Yarn Clearer for Winding 
Frames. 

When writing to advertisers please mention tliis book. 



371 







^^^\>ST«,f- 



THK 



AMERICAl DROSOFHORE CO., 

WM. FIRTH, Manager. 

150 Devonshire Street, Boston. 

The DROSOPHORE makes a perfect Spinning or Weaving atmosphere 
in any climate or weather. Any degree of Humidity is obtainable. Will 
warm the air in cold weather and coo! it in hot weather. Purifies the 
air, and is healthier for the workpeople. 

FOUR GOLD MEDALS AWARDED. 

Amiens J 894 

Reims 1895 

The only Humidifier that stood the test. 

Atlanta Exposition 1 895 

Rouen 1896 

The Gold Medal Double Nozzle DrosDphor 

has no wearing- parts, uses less water, gives a finer spray and more 
humidity than any other form of Humidifier. 

The above Company has delivered since February, 1895, 
over 6000 of these machines. 




COTTON STATES 
// Vl'^r^ANHINTEHNATlONAL 



When writ'ng: to advertisers please mention tliis book. 



372 



T. C. ENTWISTLE, 



MANUFACTURER OF 



PATENT WARPING, BALLING, 
AND BEAMING 

MACHINES. 



ALL KINDS OF 



Common Expansion Combs for Warpers, 

Beamers, and Slashers, and Traverse 

Wheel Card Grinders for Ameri= 

can or English Cotton, 

Woolen or Worsted 

Cards. 



Cor. Market and Worthen Sts., 
LOWELL, MASS. 

When writing to advertisers please mention this book. 



373 

Fredp;rick (Jkinxell, President. F. W. Hartwell, Treasurer. 

Fr.\nk B. Comins, \'ice President and General I\Ianaa;er. 



THE UNITED STATES 

Aerophor Ai[-Moistening und Ventilatiijg Go. 

PROVIDENCE, R.I. 

Making a specialty of Humidiiication, we are prepared to advise as to the best 
introduction of a Humidifying System. 

THE AMERICAN "VORTEX" HUMIDIFIER, 

THE ONLY PERFECT SYSTEIM 

For moistening the air, and maintaining a proper "condition " in all departments 
of textile manufacture. It moistens, washes, cools or warms the atmosphere of a 
room. It has no moving parts and is rapid in action. The " \'orte.\ " distributes 
3. finer spray and is of greater capacity than any other moistener. Our Single 
Nozzle gives better results than any other form of Nozzle in the market. Can be 
applied to present systems having a feed and return pipe. 

CORRESPONDENCE SOLICITED. 



Incorporated June 4. 1890, 



American Card Clothing Company, 

GENERAL OFFICES : 

WORCESTER, MASS. 

SEND ORDERS TO FACTORIES: 

"WORCESTER, LEICESTER, NORTH ANDOVER, LOWELL, WALPOLE, MASS., 
PHILADELPHIA, PA., PROVIDENCE, R.I., MANCHESTER, N.H. 

Manufacturers of every description of 

CARD CLOTHING. 

Exclusive American Licensees for the 

PATENT FLEXIFORT CARD CLOTHS. 

Special attention given to Clothing for Revolving Top Cards. 
Experts furnished to clothe and start the same. 
\Vhen writing to advertisers please mention this book. 



374 



THE METALLIC DRAWING ROLL CO. 



INDIAN ORCHARD, MASS. 



Sole Manufacturers of 

Patent Metallic Drawing Rolls, 



In United States and Canada. 



Used on all processes up to and including slubbers. We 
Guarantee 25 per cent, more production than can be obtained 
from the leather covered roll, rolls being same diameter and 
running same speed. 

ALL WORK GUARANTEED. 



For prices and particulars write to 



TflE METALLIC DRAWING ROLL CO. 

INDIAN ORCHARD, MASS. 

WLien writing to advertibers plea.se mention this book. 



COTTON 



375 



Feeders, Openers, Lappers, 

Waste Cleaners, Automatic Cleaningr 

Trunks, Thread Extractors. 



WOOL 



Picker Feeders, Church's Patent 
Wool Washers, Automatic Dryers and 
Carbonizing iVIachines. 



SHODDY 



Pickers of Kitson, Butterworth and 
English patterns, Rag Dusters. 



KITSON MACHINE CO. 

lU'ILDERS OF 

PREPARING MACHINERY FOR 

COTTON, WOOL p.^^ SHODDY, 
LOWELL, MASS. 

STUART W. CRAMER, Southern Agent, 

CHARLOTTE, N.C. 

When writing to advertisers please mention this liook. 



376 



ESTABLISHED 1856. 



A. LINDLEY & vSONS, 



Leather Manufacturers, 



{S'T.A.Iv^^BJKIOOK, KIVOPv^XIVD. 



SPFXIALITIES : 



Welsh and English Roller Skins, 

For Low, Medium and Fine Numbers. 

Persian Skins, 

For Comber Rolls. 
OUR CELEBRATED 

Crown Brand Red Skin, 

For all Speeder Rolls and for Spinning Rolls for low numbers. 

When writing to advertisers please mention this book. 




itjur' <«»,£ , y"'i^ 




.377 
Those who equip new or 
old cotton mills with 
machinery for 

Spinning, 
Spooling, 
Warping, 
Twisting 



OUR NORTHROP LOOM. 



WEAVING 



must consult with us for their own best interests. 



We have doubled the production of one room in the 
mill by the introduction of the Sawyer and Rabbeth types of 
Spindle, the Doyle and Rhoades-Chandler Separator, and 
the Double Adjustable Spinning Ring. 

We are now engaged in DOUBLING the production 
per operative of another room in the mill by our Automatic 
and Self-protecting Loom. 

Those who hesitated about the adoption of our Spindles 
have seen the error of their ways. 

A word to the wise is sufficient, 

THE DRAPER COMPANY, 

HOPEDALE, MASS. 

When writing to advortisers please iiientiou this book. 



378 



The S. Blalsddl, Jr. Co. 

EGYPTIAN AND PERUVIAN 

COTTON 



American Long Staple a Specialty. 



Shipments direct to Mill from Egypt, Peru 
and all American Southern Points. 



Cotton waste purchased on yearly 
contracts from mills. All grades 
cotton waste packed express- 
ly for export. 

CHICOPEE, MASS. 



M.B. CHARLES 

Cotton and 

Wool 

Merchant, 

AMSTERDAM, N.Y. 



Contracts made with Cotton and 

Woolen Mills for yearly 

waste production. 



CORRESPONDENCE SOLICITED. 



Cotton Wastes of all kinds packed for ex= 

port. Selected Linters for the 

batting trade. 



GEO. C. SMITH, 

Cotton Eommission 

MILLEDGEVILLE, GA. 

BRANCHES: 

Covington, Eatonton, 

Gainesville, Monticello, 

Monroe, Dublin, 

Social Circle, Sparta, 

Louisville, Ga. 

Special attention to Spinners orders. 

Correspondence Solicited. 

When writing to advertisers please mention this book. 



C. GRIESENBECK, 

Cotton Goinmission, 

SAN ANTONIO, TEXAS, 



Address, Post Office Box 464. 



;79 



THE BERLIN IRON BRIDGE CO. 







The above illustration is taken direct from a photograph and shows the construction of a 
Parabolic Truss Bridge designed and built by us connecting the cities of Saco and Biddeford, Me. 

ENGINEERS, ARCHITECTS s)? BUILDERS 

O V 

IRON AND STEEL BRIDGES, BUILDINGS AND ROOFS. 

Si! 



ter 







s^fT 



ii.'iiiinK 






il^uu -'' I 



-s*^ 






The above illustration is taken direct from a ph ; > the construction of a 

Boiler House Roof designed and built by us for Cheney Urns., ai S>>iuli Man. iioster, Conn. The con- 
struction is entirelv of Iron, the Roof being covered with our Patent .\nli-condensation Corrugated 
Iron Covering, which we guarantee will not drip or sweat under all chanices .if temperature. 

Office and Works: East Berlin, Conn. 

When writing to advertisers please mention this book. 



380 

E. A. Smith, J. P. Wilson, 

President. Sec. & Treas. 



The Charlotte Supply Co. 

General 
Mill Furnishers 

DEALERS IN 

Macliinery, Macliinists' Tools 

AND MANUFACTURERS OF 

Leather Belting. 

CHARLOTTE, N.C. 



CABLE AND TELEGRAPHIC ADDRESS: 

" PELICAN, BOLTON." 

Al TELEGRAPHIC CODE USED. 

LOCAL ADDRESS : BULLOCK ST. 



GEORGE FELL & SON, 

Manufacturers of every kind of 

Welsh, English, Persian, 

and Calf Roller Skins. 

PELICAN LEATHER WORKS 

BOLTON, ENGLAND. 



Sole Agents for tlie L'nited States 
STODDARD, HASERICK, RICHARDS k CO. 

Boston, Mass., U.S.A. 



T 



albot Dyevjuood 
ai)d Qf^efTiieal Qp. 



Works at 

North Billerica, 

Mass. 



MANUFACTURERS OF 



Extract of Indigo, 



^ 



CDcmicals, 

flcias. 



-LOWELL, MASS. 



When writing to advertisers please mention this book. 



381 



Saco and Pettee Machine Shops, 

MAIN OFFICE: 

Newton Upper Falls, Mass. 

COTTON MACHINERY 



Latest Improved Pattern. 




Revolving Flat Cards^ Slubbing, 

Railway Heads^ Intermediate and 

Drawing Frames, Roving Frames, 

Spinning Frames. 



WORKS AT 



BIDDEFORD, ME. NEWTON UPPER FALLS, MASS. 

SEND FOR ESTIMATES AND PRICES. 

When writing to advertisers please mention tliis book. 



382 



C. E. RILEY 8. CO. 

281-285 Congress Strekt - - BOSTON, MASS. 

SOLK 111 PORTERS OF 

Asa Lees & Cos Patent Self-Acting 

COTTON MULES. 




Over 600,000 Spindles at work in the United States. 

These Mules are durable, simple to operate, free from Breakdowns and 
Stoppages. 

They produce the greatest quantity and best quality and effect a great saving 
in cost of production. 

They give universal satisfaction to both the manufacturer and spinner. 

SEND FOR DESCRIPTIVE CIRCULARS AND LIST OF USERS. 



SOLE niPORTERS OF 



HOWARD & BULLOUGH, Ltd., Cotton Machinery. 

HALL & STELLS, Worsted Machinery. 

HOYLE & PRESTON Noble Combs, Backwashers, etc. 

J. HAIGH & SONS', Woolen Machinery. 

T. BROADBENT & SONS' Hydro-Extractors. 

F. J. GRUN, French System of Worsted Machinery, etc. 

J. GREENHALGH & SONS' Willows. 

J. WHITELEY & SONS' Card Clothing for Cotton Cards. 

L. M. TETLOW & SONS' Card Clothing for Woolen and Worsted Cards. 



EGYPTIAN COTTON. 

SOLE AGENTS FOR PEEL &, CO., ALEXANDRIA SHIPPERS. 

When writing t(i ailvertisers please mention this l)Ook. 



283 



HOWARD &, BULLOUGH 



American Machine Co., Lid. 

Pawtucket, R.I. 



BUILDERS OF 




IM 




HC 



IMl 



\^ 



Bale Breakers. 
Feeders. 

Self Feeding Openers. 

breaker, Intermediate and 
Finisher Lappers. 




Revolving Flat Cards. 

Drawing Frames. 

Slubbing, Intermediate and Roving Frames. 
Spinning Frames. 

Warpers and Slashers. 



WE INVITE INVESTIGATIOIM AND COMPARISON. 

When writing to advertisers please mention this book. 



;5S4 



Telegraphic Address, "platts," Oldham. 



PLATT BROS. & CO.. ltd 



HARTFORD WORKS, OLDHAM, ENGLAND, 

Makers of Machinery, in ^reat variety for 

Ginning, Opening, Preparing, Combing, Spinning, Doubling 

and Weaving 

COTTON, WOOL, WORSTED, SILK WASTE, ETC. 



INCLIJDINO 



Patent Macarthy Cotton Gins, for long or 

short slapleil Cotton. 
Improved Cotton Bale Breakers or Pulling 

Machines. 
Hard Waste Breaking-up Machinery. 
Improved Self-Acting Willow. 
Patent Automatic Hopper Feeder, with Filling 

Apparatus. 
Improved Lattice Feeding Macliines. 
Crighton's Opener, with Improved Feeder. 
Patent Exhaust Opener and Lap Machine. 
Dust Trunks, with Patent Traveling Ribbed 

Cloth or Grid. 
Scutchers, with Patent Pedal Regulators, etc. 
Roller and Clearer Carding Engines. 
Patent Revolving, Self-Stripping Flat Carding 

Engines. 
Carding Engines, with Condensers specially 

adapted for coarse yarns from cotton 

waste, etc. 
Carding Engines and Condensers for Wool, 

etc.: Martin's, Bolette's, Sachsische, and 

other systems. 
Card Grinding Machines. 
Patent Machinery for Carding and Spinning 

Silk Waste. 
Patent Burring Machines for Wool. 
Combing Machines, Heilman's, Patent ; also 

Whipple's Patent. 



Combing Machines for Wool, Worsted, etc. ; 
I.ittle & Eastwood's Patent. 

Dugdill & Kershaw's Patent Silk Combers. 

Drawing, Slubbing, Intermediate and Roving 
Frames. 

Ring Spinning Frames, for Warp and Weft. 

Patent Self- .Acting Mules and Twiners. 

Ring and Flyer Doubling Frames. 

Boyd's Patent Stop Motion Twisters. 

Chapon's Patent Cup Spinning Frames. 

Reeling, Winding, Warping. Beaming, Sizing 
and Dressing Machinery. 

Power Looms, for Weaving Dhooties ( Broad- 
hurst's Patent 1. 

Power Looms of All Description, for Plain and 
Fancy Cloths, in Cotton, Linen, Woolen, 
Worsted, Jute, etc. 

Cloth Folding and Measuring Machines. 

Hydraulic and Cam Bundling Presses for Yarn 
and Cloth. 

Coleby's Patent Bundling Presses. 

Vigogne and Cotton Wa^te or Barchant 
Machinery. 

Machinery for Preparing, Spiiinina; and Weav- 
ing Asbestos. 

Worsted Preparing, Combing, Roving and 
Spinning Machinery, on both French and 
Bradford Systems. 

Patent Brick Making Machinery. 



ETC.. ETC. 

/Igents for U.S.A. : MESSRS. EI/AN A. LEIGH & CO., 35 & 36 Mason BIdg., 

BOSTON, Ivl.ASS. 
Manchester Office: 5 St. Ann's Square. Glasgow Office : 109 Hope Street, 

JWR. RICHARD IVIURRRY, Hgent. 

When writing to advertisers please mention this book. 




I'i'.* 



Ml 



i.i 



••■"'; i^i^ ' .'hit ■'••«' 







:.i.;'.-:. 



